Unfinished stories
by J.L.Lunar
Summary: All the stories I won't complete going in here so they're not gone, but chances are pretty much slim to nothing that I'll touch them again.
1. Reverse

****So, uploading all the stories I'm not going to finish before deleting them - as the wise Lady suggested.****

****But basically, check my profile for more information on wtf is going on (well, if the profile ever updates. It updates slow)****

****And I'm just.. Really really sorry.****

****Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Captured****

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><p>Smirking to himself, Touzouku slid along the wall, back pressed into the ancient stones. He knew that nobody inhabited this tomb, but that didn't mean it was safe. Stepping gingerly along with his soft-soled shoes, the thief made sure to stop every step and feel the ground before him, making sure he didn't trip any wires.<p>

"This is to easy," he muttered to himself, ending his trip down the passageway. Laying out before him was a large, dome-like room. The walls were engraved with ancient hieroglyphics, and gold was scattered about, winking in the torch lights.

Frowning, Akefia studied the little metal spires. They were fashioned to look like bird beaks, opening up their large maws to welcome the burning flames to reside upon their tongues. What Akefia was so unsure about, however, was the fact that they were burning.

He knew that scientists had developed coal that could burn for at least three years. But, to his knowledge, the family that lived here had all died of some sickness, about five years back. He didn't know how it was possible these torches were still running, then, but he knew he needed to get back outside to his brothers once more.

Lowering his silvery eyes, he focused in on the treasures and golden trinkets about. Grinning murderously, he moved forward, red robe snapping smartly behind him as he strode fully into the room. Reaching to the side of his sarong, he pulled out the bag that he'd tucked in there. With this gold, he and his brothers would be able to eat for months!

Letting out a deep and reverberating laugh, he hunched over and began shuffling the golden items inside. The pads of his fingers brushed against the various jewelry, before shoving them away. He only needed the coins right now. Later, he could come back with Bakura, and steal the rest.

Chuckling again at his brilliancy, Akefia only stopped when he heard a scuffling noise behind him. Narrowing his eyes, he tightened his grip on the bag, and slowly rose to his full height. Turning on his heel, he was confronted with a blonde boy, holding up a rather large, metal pipe over his head.

Suddenly, the boy's arms moved, and he was attempting to bring the pipe crashing down on Akefia's head. Touzouku lurched out, though, just as fast, and connected the giant bag of golden coins into the blonde's temple. The boy faltered, and made a groaning noise. The pipe slipped in his fingers, and dragged down Akefia's cheek.

Reeling back, the thief collapsed to the ground, eyes widening as he felt the blood pumping from his wound. His fingers moved against his cheek, slippery and wet as the heated blood coated his face and hands.

Gasping, he turned around, just as the pipe connected with his head, knocking him unconscious.

-(-o-)-

Akefia's eyelids fluttered open, and he attempted to jerk forward, only just then realizing that he was chained to a chair. A very nice and comfortable chair, though. The seat and back were cushioned with a beautiful indigo pattern, blossoming flowers showing up on where the buttons would go. The frame of it was golden, with patterns of Ra spreading his wings painstakingly carved into them.

Shifting slightly, the thief realized that his red robe had been taken, leaving him bare-chested. Grunting, he attempted to moved forward again, but was met by the straining of chains biting into his dark skin.

Speaking of pain, he could feel an odd type of pulsing coming from his cheek. With a spark of memory, he realized it was from that boy who had attacked him earlier. Letting out a vicious snarl, he rocked foward, managing to plant his feet on the ground. He had to find that boy and pay him back, even if it meant waddling.

The chair was heavier then he thought, but that wasn't really a problem. Akefia happened to be strong enough to handle something like this. If he could scale walls, he could hold a chair up with just his leg muscles.

Scuffling forwards, he inspected his surroundings. He was in a simple, darker room then before. It had a purple decorated bed off to the side, with satin pillows and everything. There were a few chests, but from what Akefia could see, all that resided within their wooden depths was clothes.

Huffing, he saw that a few pictures were pinned to the wall. One was of a beautiful woman with raven colored hair and startling lavender eyes. Beside her was another little girl, that could've been her younger sister, or daughter. A few pictures had a man with streaked grey hair and beard, and a stern expression, showing clear displeasure at being photographed. There was pictures of the blonde boy from before, too, often in the company of the raven haired woman, or a black man with a ponytail set at the base of his skull.

Watching the pictures, he could only assume that they were of the family that he had heard died in here. They were supposed to be protecting the treasures, but had contracted a disease that destroyed them all.

So why was that little blonde boy still here?

Shaking his head, Akefia decided he didn't care. That little brat was going to pay. Heading over to one of the chests, Touzouku peered inside, wondering if there was a knife in there. Usually, Akefia had knives on him, but he'd left them with his brothers for protection.

His brothers...

Akefia became even more frantic in his searching, even going so far as to dive his face into the clothes, nose moving them out of the way, not even pausing when his mouth was practically tasting the boy's underwear.

"What're you doing?" A voice demanded behind him, and all to suddenly he was jerked backwards. Akefia felt the chair being pulled, and so in turn his body went with it, slamming into the cushiony surface, and his neck bumping against the person behind him's fingers.

Akefia didn't answer the person, and instead glared angrily over his shoulder, spotting the boy from earlier. Now he was dressed in a lavender mid-riff, revealing a flat, toned stomach, and his arms were bare as well, revealing the boy had muscle. Golden bands were clasped tightly to his forearms and biceps, along with neck clasps and earrings. Black britches hung loosely around his hips, a blue belt held them in place.

The blonde sneered, and his brow wrinkled, nose squishing up. "That's disgusting. My underwear was in there." Moving past Akefia, the blonde began hurriedly folding things and placing them back in the chest, muttering something about how 'Isis would be ashamed'; whoever the fuck that was.

Grinning, Akefia saw the perfect opportunity. Lifting up a foot, he snapped it forwards, allowing his heel to connect with the boy's anus. Immediately, the younger one floundered, letting out a yelp as he was propelled forward, face slamming into the lid of the chest.

Jumping up from his seat, Akefia prepared to attack the boy, but he was stopped as a foot connected with his chest, successfully winding him. Staring down, he realized that the boy had managed to turn himself around, arms propping him up against the trunk's rim.

Falling backwards, Akefia felt the back legs of the chair hit the ground and rock, sending the grey haired man sprawling backwards, head connecting roughly with the stone floor. His mouth opened wide in a silent vocalization of pain, and he simply sat there, teeth gritted, as colors popped before his eyes.

He felt something grip the chair again, and he was jerked up right, staring into livid, lavender eyes.

"Why did you do that?-!" the younger boy hissed. Akefia snorted, and jerked savagely in the chair.

"You attack me, then ask why I kicked you in the ass?-!" Akefia barked, struggling more and more in his chair. "Fuck you, kid! Now release me so I can slit that throat of yours, and get back outside!"

At the word outside, the boy's expression morphed instantly, and his eyes widened just a bit. "I'm Marik, not kid," the blonde informed Akefia, before dropping down to his knees. Normally, Touzouku would've liked seeing someone on their knees before him, but Marik wasn't doing it out of defeat. No, no, he was doing this of his own volition; probably just tired or relieved.

"I couldn't give two shits about your name," Touzouku shot back, lifting a foot to possibly kick Marik again. The kid just snorted, and waved at his foot, eyes cautiously watching each and every movement the thief made.

"I'll make you a proposition," Marik said instead, and slowly rocked forwards onto his feet, dusting off his black britches. He gave a sly grin to Akefia, and strode closer to the grey haired man.

"Who says I'm willing to make deals?" Akefia snarled, attempting to look threatening as he bared his teeth, revealing sharp canines.

"I have you tied up," Marik replied simply. "And you have no reason to act so rudely to me." The blonde began circling Akefia, much to the prisoner's chagrin. He didn't like people doing things like this; he was a prideful being.

"I don't have a reason?" Akefia mocked, eyebrows drawing together as his lips pulled back into a sneer. "You attacked me, tied me up, and on top of all that, you cut open my face!" Akefia shrieked. "I have every right to be as pissed off, you annoying brat!" At this point, the thief began rocking back and forth in his chair, attempting to possibly break one of the legs, or hit the blonde.

Marik walked behind the chair, and placed his hands on it, however, causing it to stop its movement. Akefia let a growl rip itself from his throat, and he watched cautiously as Marik finally released him, and strode back before the thief.

"First of all, you were stealing from me. What was I going to do, let you leave here unharmed?" Marik questioned angrily, and ignored Akefia's sarcastic nod. "Secondly, yes I tied you up. You attacked me with my own gold! I couldn't trust you! And finally; yes, I cut open your eye. On accident. And, in my defense, I stitched it up and took care of it!" Marik seemed to be finished, and he leaned forward, prodding slightly at Akefia's cheek.

The thief moved to bite Marik's finger, but the blonde merely retracted it, and stood up straight once more. Twitching his mouth a little, Akefia could indeed feel the stitches straining against the skin, and realized that was what the throbbing was. It was that feeling of a healed wound. Scowling, Akefia glared up at Marik. He would never say thanks.

"So, on to my proposition," Marik continued, acting as if their momentary spat had never taken place. "I want you to take me into the outside world. The Surface." At those sentences, the blonde's eyes seemed to ignite with some type of hidden passion, and he even gazed longingly towards the door.

Akefia snorted and looked away. "Take your own damned self," the thief spat, not wanting to deal with this brat for any longer then he initially had to. Marik, however, seemed non-plussed by that answer, and puckered his lips.

"I can't," Marik responded. "I've never been to the surface. Ever." His voice sounded dry and hollow, but Akefia couldn't bring himself to care at the moment. "I wasn't allowed. And then, when my family died, I was to scared to explore. I don't know where anything is."

With that said, the boy's mood abruptly changed again, and he soon had his hands in Akefia's lap, nails digging slightly into the darker one's thigh. Letting out an agitated hiss, the thief watched as small beads of blood appeared from the broken skin.

"So, if you take me with you," Marik stated, a sneaky grin over-coming his face. Vaguely, Akefia recognized it as a smug I've-already-won-face, and this angered him. "I'll let you take all the gold that you can carry from this place."

At this, the thief's attention perked, and he eyed Marik warily.

"So," Akefia said slowly, "if I show you the Surface, you will allow me to steal all this gold, and I will be released?"

"I believe I just said that," Marik replied drily, clearly not happy about having everything repeated. "Now what's your name, thief?"

"You will call me by Touzouku," Akefia spat, eyes narrowing.

"Well, Touzouku? How does my offer sound?"

Akefia bit the inside of his cheek, and mulled it over for a moment. He saw a brief flash of his brothers' faces, however, and new instantly that he truly had no choice. He needed to return to his siblings, and on top of that this place was loaded with gold! So, despite the fact that he hated Marik being correct, he sucked in a large breath, and faced the exited child before him.

"You have yourself a deal, partner."

-(-o-)-

**Please Review.**

**Seeya!**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 2: Chapter 2: Marik Falls<strong>**

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><p>Bakura straddled his horse, eyes narrowing as he gripped the saddle between his thighs. A bead of sweat rolled down his neck, just to rivulet further down, trickling along his spine. Beneath him, his stallion pawed the sandy ground, snorts ensuing from his velvety nostrils.<p>

Lifting a skeletal hand, Bakura ran his fingers carefully across the horse's corded neck, fingers not hesitating as the skin undulated beneath his caressing touch. Removing his hand, Bakura gripped the reigns once more, and looked over his shoulders.

A soft, beautiful, red-colored mare met his gaze, umber orbs regarding him curiously. No doubt the horse was confused by the fact that their real master was not present, and the lead horse was stationed at home; not with the current party.

Its rider wasn't confused, just saddened. The boy astride the horse had long white hair-much like Bakura's-cascading down his back. Wide, chocolate eyes were shadowed by a soft veil that hung atop his brow. He wore a simple tanned tunic that matched his look-a-like, along with soft slippers.

"Bakura," the whittete muttered, before knocking his heels against his horse's belly, urging her to strut forward, lining up with Bakura's. "As much as I hate it, I think we should head home." A type of sorrow resided in the boy's tone, along with a hint of defeat. His eyes stared solemnly towards a small door in the sand.

Bakura grunted, and squinted his eyes tight, leering at the door, along with the marker they'd used to rediscover it. For three days, he and Ryou had returned several times a day to this spot, hoping to see a grey head of hair erupting from the black tomb, pulling riches along behind him, laughing all the time.

No such luck had befallen the two younger Touzouku's, however, since Akefia had shown no signs of appearing.

"You're right," Bakura conceded, and drew his horse about. The harsher twin didn't really feel saddened (he and Akefia were often at odds) but he did feel a type of loss.

"Well, no sense in hanging about," Bakura stated, before going side-saddle so he could grasp the little marker. Smirking slightly, Bakura righted himself on his horse, and thought about what Akefia's death entailed.

Hiding his expression from the broken-hearted Ryou, Bakura allowed his murderous gaze to stretch wider, causing odd folds onto the pale boy's face.

Bakura was now the Thief King; the coveted title.

Touzouku-ou.

-(-o-)-

"Why don't we just go out the way I came in? My brothers are probably waiting for me up there, anyways," Akefia growled, eyes narrowing slightly as he regarded the blonde boy striding in front of him.

"That way isn't an exit," Marik replied simply, slowing his steps for a moment and falling back beside the much larger man, a cocky smirk on his face. "So you should be thanking me, really. If not for me being here, you would've been trapped forever!" With a psychotic laugh, Marik tilted his head back, lips peeling away from his teeth.

"You're telling me no one could break in here and escape?" Akefia gave a barking laugh. "You're full of shit, kid! A good thief can make it out of anything!" Puffing up with pride, the grey haired man chuckled to himself, not noticing that Marik's mood had mellowed out.

"One man made it in," Marik said quietly, "and escaped. But he stole the Pharaoh's blue prints to the place." Sighing, the tomb-keeper ran a hand through his hair, and continued down the dank hall, not even bothering to stay within the torch-light that the thief held aloft.

Sneering, Touzouku figured it wasn't worth questioning the child about. After all, he really didn't care none to much, so this was fine. Instead, he focused on watching each of Marik's steps, measuring the child's stride and the way he carried himself. The boy tended to walk like an exited child, as if nobody ever taught him to walk properly. He appeared to bounce ever-so-slightly on his toes, while swinging his arms a bit to much.

Akefia didn't let that make him think of Marik as stupid, however. No, no, the blonde had a spark of intelligence in his lavender eyes-and a bright one at that. Marik might have been ignorant, but he certainly wasn't and idiot by any degree.

Grumbling underneath his breath, Akefia shifted the torch to his opposite hand, realizing that his arm had grown sore.

"You keep mentioning brothers," Marik piped up, clearly wanting to have conversation. Akefia vaguely wondered if that was the cause of being trapped alone for so long, that made the blonde so thirsty for attention and contact.

"Yeah, there's two of them," Akefia responded, figuring he might as well humor the boy that he would-apparently-have to be dealing with for quite some time. "Bakura and Ryou. Bakura's the bastard. Ryou's the bitch- easy enough." Shrugging his shoulders, Akefia heard his cloak (which Marik had graciously returned) rustle slightly.

"How nice of you," Marik said drily, mouth twisting up into a smirk as he peered up at the taller man. "I can tell you must be close."

"Incredibly."

After that, it was quiet for minutes that seemed to drag on into eternity. Akefia couldn't help but allow his eyes to wander to the smaller boy that was leading him through the cavern, attempting to figure the kid out.

He was a thief, so it was only natural.

"Why didn't you die of the sickness?" Akefia demanded bluntly, and watched as the boy grew ridged. All to suddenly, every line of his back came into focus, and his gaze slowly swiveled to face Akefia.

"I don't want to talk about the... _sickness,_" Marik spat, eyes narrowing as the light played across the lavender orbs, giving them a beautiful spark. "And it would do you good not to question me anymore."

Feeling his anger rear up, Akefia took a threatening step forward. "I'll question whatever the hell I feel like and, for another thing-" Akefia advanced another step, just to be cut off by a scream. Freezing, Akefia felt his blood go cold, as he recognized the voices of Ryou and Bakura.

"Ryou!" Akefia roared, before shooting forward, leaving a stunned Marik to attempt to catch up with him. He could hear the tell-tale panting, however, as the confused child attempted to follow Akefia's break-neck speed.

It was quite clear, however, that the boy wasn't physically fit. He had muscle, but Akefia knew that didn't matter. Huffing and shaking his head, the thief cleared his thoughts, and turned over to look over his shoulder.

"Where's the exit!" Akefia barked, not even slowing down in the slightest. He could see Marik stumbling over words as he began gasping and choking. Letting out an irritated snarl, Akefia slammed his heels into the ground, sending dust flying around his feet as his cloak whirled around his ankle.

Marik slid to a stop, and started grasping at his throat, breath rattling due to his heavy breathing. "It's... At the end... Of this tunnel... Just a few more feet," Marik choked out between gasps.

He stumbled forward, and reached up, revealing a trap door that Akefia would've missed in the dim lighting. Growling, he saw that Marik was taking to long, and just rushed over, wrapping his arm around the other boy's slim waist and yanking him up, punching open the door and dragging he and Marik both out into the open.

Blinking, Akefia recoiled from the sharp burst of sunlight that blinded him. Hissing angrily, he felt Marik's face press hard into his chest, attempting to use Akefia to block out the harsh light. Frowning, Akefia pressed Marik in close to him, and rose up again, blinking away the colors that were popping before his eyes, and focusing on the task of running.

Hooking his arms around Marik, he actually hoisted the boy up, and held him, not wanting to have to wait for Marik to keep up with him. Squinting around, Akefia did a quick check of his surroundings, eyes narrowed as he peered over-top the blonde shock of hair that was almost obscuring his view.

What met his eyes was sand.

Nothing but sand.

Growling, he moved forward, not even knowing quite where he was going. He was lead in a good direction, however, when he heard a howling start up. It sounded like Bakura's voice, and despite all their differences, it caused Akefia's heart to quicken and clench as he sped forward, slowed down by the child in his arms.

Marik was beginning to move though, peeking his head out occasionally and taking in the sun's rays as Akefia ran. It wasn't really how the thief would've preferred their first day to go, but it was going to have to do.

Grunting, the grey-haired man continued to run, red cloak floating around his back as he raced across the sand, following the sounds of the voices. As he reached a particularly large dune, he was surprised to see two flashes of white appearing at the crest of it, before falling, slamming into the sand and falling the rest of the way down, screaming all the way.

Akefia ground to a halt, and watched as Bakura and Ryou both tumbled to his feet, both clutching bleeding appendages, their faces haggard. Ryou's was filled with absolute fear, whereas Bakura's was wearing grim determination.

Both of the twins craned their necks to see their brother standing there, shocked and surprised, while clutching at a strange child.

"Kefi!" Ryou mumbled, rising shakily to his legs and clutching at a torn arm. "Kefi, there's some type of demon up there! I've never seen it before..." With that, the whittete broke down, slipping to his knees once more and panting.

Akefia grimaced, and quickly lowered Marik to the sand. The blonde flopped backwards, eyes still squinted up as he studied the two twins. Needless to say, he was given two shocked looks.

However, Akefia's attention wasn't on them. Instead, he was watched the rather large beast now cresting the top of the hill. Staring up at it, it appeared to be about half the size of an elephant, but with a dog like body and head. Its jaws were gaping wide, dripping with his brothers' blood. A large, purple tongue snaked its way between fangs, and it made a low, crooning noise from the back of its throat.

A black pelt rippled over a skeletal body, each rib practically scrabbling to get free from its furry prison. Despite all that, the beast was undoubtedly strong, and without a second's hesitation, Akefia's hand dropped to his thigh, preparing to grab the blade that he kept there.

His fingers brushed smooth skin, however, and he froze, eyes widening as he shifted his attention from his leg, to the beast, and then to the dazed Marik, who was sitting there, staring up at the creature atop the hill.

"You unarmed me!" Akefia barked, whirling on Marik, and sending a cloud of sand into the air. He glared down at the blonde, but kept his peripheral vision focused in completely upon the beast that was still pacing solemnly at the top of the dune, clearly not ready to let its fun end just yet.

"You could've killed me!" Marik replied, rising slowly to his feet, and shaking his head, apparently used to the sunlight. "Gods... The sunlight is brighter then the books make it sound," the hissed. "And what's that Tenebrae**(1)** doing here?"

"What the hell is a Tenebrae?" Akefia demanded, shifting his position to the so-called beast, and ignoring his brothers' confused expressions. Instead, he focused in on the words that Marik was saying.

"A Tenebrae. You know; they're a majestic creature that one of the ancient Pharaohs used as a guard dog. He had a pact with the leader of the creatures, but the Pharaoh soon grew sick of them. He believed they were bringing evil into his palace. So, wanting to be done with the things, the Pharaoh had all but one murdered.

"The one escaped," Marik whispered, eyes locking onto the creature above, "and gained magical powers, swearing to destroy anyone and everything that was ever connected with the Pharaoh."

"One problem," Akefia muttered, watching as the beast's shoulders began to roll, showing that he was preparing to attack. "I have nothing to do with the Pharaoh. In fact, the only one here who does, is you."

Shifting his gaze to the side, Akefia watched as the blonde put two and two together, before glaring daggers up at Akefia. "We had a deal!" the blonde shouted, rising up rebelliously. His attempt was futile, however, seeing as Akefia shoved him towards the dune, before turning on his heel and grabbing his brothers.

Pulling the two up with him, Akefia began running. Bakura soon gained his footing, and ran on his own, leaving his brother's grasp. Ryou, however, was staring back at Marik, eyes widened as he watched the blonde boy fall at the foot of the dune.

"Akefia, you can't leave him!" Ryou gasped. He attempted to run towards the blonde, but Akefia quickly grabbed the whittete, and tossed him over his shoulder like a sack of flour. A grunt reached his ears, followed by a low growl, urging him to move faster.

-(-o-)-

Marik stared, wide-eyed, as Akefia ran with his brother's. He quickly recovered from his astonishment, however, and focused on the fact that a drooling beast was staring down at him, clearly happy that its prey was completely isolated.

Letting out a shaky breath, Marik slowly rose to his feet, and stumbled back a few steps. However, with each step he took back, the beast strode forward. Frowning, Marik stared up at the Tenebrae, not sure of what the beast was planning.

In a second, however, it didn't matter, because the beast was rushing down the hill, jaw wide as he kicked up sand and dirt behind him. Gritting his teeth, Marik decided to make one final attempt to run.

Turning his back to the Tenebrae, he pumped his legs, unconsciously heading towards the red cloak that was fluttering in the distance. He never did reach it, though.

All to suddenly, he felt hot wet breath collecting against the back of his skin, and rough claws pressing onto his shoulders. With one final, defeated yelp, Marik tumbled to the ground beneath the black creature.

-(-o-)-

**(1)- Pronounced: Teh-neh-brie. Awesome points if you can tell me where I got that name from, and even MORE Awesome points if you know what it**

**Reviews are loved.**

**See ya**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Savior my Savior<strong>**

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><p>"GO SAVE HIM!" Ryou bellowed in Akefia's ears, launching kicks and punches into his brother's broad chest. Akefia grimaced, and swatted Ryou on the butt, keeping his brother still, and attempting to hold his struggling body.<p>

Bakura was keeping pace alongside them, white hair blowing across his shoulders. Whipping his pale pointed face about, he peered through the cloud of cottony hair blocking his view, and let out a startled noise.

Akefia had a momentary lapse of focus, where his right leg hit the sand and wobbled slightly, causing him to release Ryou. The smallest Touzouku dropped to the sand with a heavy thunk, and Akefia cursed violently as he crumpled to the ground.

Bakura was ignoring both of them, though, and was staring mutely at where Marik was.

Ryou rose up, spitting sand out from between his teeth as he frantically raked his hair back away from his face. White strands flew about his equally pallid face, and he stared wide-eyed in the same direction as Bakura.

Akefia was the last to look, though he didn't miss much.

Apparently, Marik had just gotten started.

-(-o-)-

Snarling, Marik launched a heavy fist into the creatures maw, causing the creature's jaw bones to crack underneath the pressure. Heaving with his legs, Marik pressed his knees into the creature's underbelly, and sent the Tenebrae flying upwards, crashing into the sand with muted yelps of pain.

The thing was lighter then Marik had expected, despite its size. He supposed that could have something to do with the fact that the creature was that of the Shadows, and therefore lacked a certain amount of density.

Right now, however, Marik didn't care about any of that. Instead, his hands ticked back to his pockets, and he pushed a sweating palm into the torn fabric of them, retracting a large knife from within.

Staring at the blade, he smirked, and thanked the Gods that he'd thought to disarm the thief. He now held Akefia's knife clasped tightly in his sweating palm, the cold steel blade causing chills to erupt the softest part of his hand.

Breath ragged, Marik stumbled to his feet, and slid his legs into position, hoisting the knife in front of him, and brandishing it to the snarling beast. Licking his dry, sand coated lips, Marik spit visciously, before rushing forward towards the demon.

A loud, ear-splitting screech erupted from the Tenebrae's mouth, and its paws pounded against the sand as it ran back towards Marik, meeting the blonde in an explosive collision of blood and shrieks.

Marik roared with pain as a claw snagged itself in his shoulder, ripping apart the skin and causing a splurt of crimson liquid to shoot from his arm. A slight paralyisis took over the limb, and his twitching fingers could barely hold onto the bloodied knife.

For Marik had cut the beast as well.

The Tenebrae stumbled away, paws heavy against the sand as it staggered, clearly taking a toll from the large gash across its stomach. Its blood wasn't red, but Marik knew that was what it had to be. The green slush erupting from the cut, after all, could serve no other purpose.

A wave of dizziness shook Marik, and he flopped to the ground, letting out a short cry. His knees connected harshly with the desert floor, and he let out a sharp cry of pain. Transitioning the knife to his opposite hand, Marik gritted his teeth, and prepared for the beast's attack.

Rising from its position, the Tenebrae turned fiery eyes to Marik, teeth gnashing together. Pupils rolled and a wicked, spittle flecked tongue rolled from between large fangs, giving the beast the look of a deranged mutt.

It shot forward, large black paws sending spurts of sand kicking up behind its tail. Spit flew from its gaping maw, and Marik let out a sharp cry of surprise at the creature's astonishing speed. He lifted the knife frantically, hoping to stab the creature through its lower jaw.

He was stopped, however, by some type of a hand smacking away his own. Marik blinked in surprise, before a large blur of white planted itself in front of Marik. Blinking, Marik realized it as one of Touzouku's brothers- the ruby eyed one.

The boy was already meeting the Tenebrae, fist cramming down the creature's voluminous throat. Marik rose from his position, holding his arm, and gained a full view of the creature's tonsils being ripped from the back of its throat.

Deciding not to be useless, Marik took a running start, and slid beneath the pained Tenebrae's body. Jabbing upwards, his shoved his knife in between the demon's rib cage, cutting out a large chunk of meet and skin. Green blood splattered against Marik's face, and he made a noise of disgust, but otherwise ignored it. Instead, he shoved his fist in between bones.

Above him, the creature screeched and stampeded its paws, clearly not pleased with this intrusion. Marik's savior, however, was holding the beast's head still, keeping the Tenebrae stationary for the most part.

Grunting, Marik thrust forward harder, fist pushing through innards. His fingers met something, and he wrapped his slim digits about its surface, and gave a harsh tug. Something snapped, and Marik retracted his hand, dragging out a still pumping heart.

More of the green liquid pulsed out into Marik's palm, and he made a noise of disgust. It was short lived, however, as he felt the Tenebrae collapse atop him, skin undulating as its paws kicked at the air, having his final spasms before dying.

Shocked, Marik felt his mouth filled with some type of coarse fur. Screaming and coughing, he tried to shove at the heavy beast, but had no luck. A hand wrapped around his ankle, however, and dragged Marik out from beneath the Tenebrae.

A cocky grin stretched across a narrow face greeted him, and Marik scowled up at the white haired boy. Large, bat like protrustions rose from his head, before the rest just merely spiked downwards, hanging around his shoulders.

"You're not that bad of a fighter," the man admitted, lowering a green coated hand to Marik. Grimacing, the blonde accepted it, and was pulled from his sitting position. He wobbled on his legs slightly, but the other boy merely wrapped an arm around Marik's waist, and held the boy close to him.

Marik leaned gratefully against the white haired man, and allowed him to lead Marik forward. His relaxed mood was ruined, however, as he caught sight of Touzouku. Lips pulling back in a snarl, Marik lurched from the pale arm, and rushed Touzouku, slamming hard into the bigger man's chest.

Touzouku let out a grunt, and hit the sand beneath Marik's form. Immediatley, the blonde began launching punches into Touzouku's bare chest, screaming curses and other vile things as he pounded the other man.

"Oh, stop that!" A voice cried off to the side, and pale hands grasped Marik's wrists, holding the darker boy captive. Snarling, Marik glared down at what appeared to be an almost identical version of the boy who'd saved him- presumably his twin.

"Let go of me!" Marik commanded, and jerked at his arms. The softer twin, however, held on tight, and glared at Marik, his gaze clearly showing displeasure.

"My brother just saved you," the other argued, "you owe us some gratitude. Now hush and get off of Kefi." Marik paused, and glared down at 'Kefi'. The man was just sitting there, bored, not really bothered at all by Marik's sudden attack. The only thing that had changed, it seemed, was the fact that Touzouku was now covered in green slime.

The twin who had saved Marik thought it was hilarious, and even bent over, placing a hand on his knee as he laughed copiously at the disgruntled elder boy. Touzouku finally grew irritated, and shoved Marik off of him, sending the blonde sprawling into the smaller twin's lap.

"Shut your mouth, Touzouku-ji," Touzouku admonished, and rose from his position, dusting sand off of his long cloak. All laughter ceased, and the red-eyed twin's face scrunched up, teeth baring in a snarl as he glared up at his older brother.

"Bakura!" the twin holding Marik barked, "You and Kefi behave! We have bigger matters at hand, like the fact that we're all injured!" Bakura and 'Kefi' both turned to regard their sibling, before snarling and hastily agreeing.

"I'm Ryou, by the way," the other twin continued, before wrapping his arms about Marik's shoulders, and dragging the blonde boy up with him into the standing position. "And I'm sure you know Akefia and Bakura."

"Touzouku," Akefia corrected, holding up a finger and glaring down at Marik. "I don't want this nuisance calling me that. And if you ask me, we should ditch him next chance we get." Touzouku lifted a large hand, and ran it through his grey locks.

"I say we keep him," Bakura argued, grin cutting across his face in a jagged line of fangs and tongue, reminding Marik eerily of the Tenebrae. "He sure is a pretty litte thing," the white haired boy went on, causing Ryou and Akefia to roll their eyes, while Marik just felt puzzled. Weren't girls supposed to be pretty?

"I saw we keep him, because he's hurt," Ryou said, glaring at both of his brothers. "And if either of you wish to argue, then I'll just ignore you anyways." With a decisive snort, Ryou regarded Akefia. "And later on, you are going to tell us how you came across Marik, and why it took you so long to return... And where that scar came from."

Marik winced at the mention of the scar, as did Akefia. His purple eyes turned darker, and he glared angrily at nothing in particular. He shook his head, however, and focused on the matter at hand.

"What happened to the horses? Where are they?" the thief questioned, voice harsh as he glared at Ryou. The whittete huffed in annoyance, clearly not liking being adressed this way.

"We sent them running when the Tenebrae caught sight of us. No doubt they probably went flocking to Aswad," Ryou replied, still propping the confused Marik up. The blonde didn't like his visit to the outside world so far. It actually almost made him miss his uneventful life down below the sands.

"Then they'll be easy to find," Akefia muttered, before reaching a hand into his sarong. Marik blinked, and watched as he extracted a whistle from within the folds of the fabric. Bakura sneered in disgust, but said nothing as Akefia lifted the whistle to his lips and blew.

Blinking in surprise, Marik looked to Ryou in confusion. The boy's brown eyes, however, were scanning the distance, not paying the least bit attention to the blonde in his arms. Sighing dejectedly, Marik shifted his gaze to the side as well. Akefia was watching the horizon as well, as was Bakura. Well, until Marik looked at him. At that point, the boy stared intensley at Marik, before allowing his tongue to flicker out and wave teasingly at Marik.

Marik leaned back, pressing more into Ryou as a dumbfounded look overtook his face. Did Bakura want to lick him? Why? Perhaps he was a cannable?

Frowning, he glared at Bakura, before savagley shaking his head. Bakura returned the frown, and looked away, his expression almost resembling a pout as he stared in the same direction as the other Touzoukus.

"There they are," Akefia finally grumbled, lifting a finger and pointing, quite unnecesarily, towards the large shadows cresting the dunes. Marik's eyes opened wide as he recongized them to be horses. Of course, he'd never seen any before, and this was a shock to behold.

"Aswad!" Akefia stated, and a large black stallion stomped up to the thief, two smaller horses trailing behind it, noses practically pressed into the others hindquarters out of reverence. Marik's eyes widened in fear, and he huddled down further into Ryou's grasp, clearly unsettled by the large animals.

A red mare broke apart from the others, and stomped over to Ryou, eyes staring unblinkingly down her snout as she regarded Marik with something that could almost be seen as contempt. Skittish, Marik quickly jerked away, and stumbled backwards, thumping into Bakura.

Pale arms wrapped about Marik's waist, and held the boy close, a dark chuckle tickling his ear. "Relax, boy," Bakura stated, "these horses are trained. They won't stomp you, or eat your pretty golden hair."

Marik fidgeted at the compliment. Was his hair pretty? He wasn't aware of that. It did seem to send little flutters spiraling about his stomach, however, so he quickly looked away, not knowing if other people could possibly see their little wings beating within his tummy.

"Bakura, quit being weird," Ryou sighed, and placed a slippered foot in his stirrup, hoisting himself into the soft leather saddle. It was a soft blue color, with golden designs painted across the edge.

"Oh, shut up," Bakura snarled, releasing Marik in favor of striding up to his own mare. "Dammit..." the albino snarled, crawling up atop his horse. The white horse beneath him snorted, and tossed her head, frosty mane tickling Bakura's tunic.

Akefia glared at his brothers, before shifting his attention to Marik. "Get your ass over here," the thief commanded, but Marik just proffered a glare, not happy with being spoken to this way. Bakura cackled.

Huffing, the thief strode over to Marik, and grabbed the blonde, hoisting him up and tossing him over his shoulder. Marik let out a cry of surprise as his face came dangerously closet to Akefia's ass. With a cry of disgust, Marik reeled back. He may have been ignorant, but he knew what came out of there.

Marik knew.

"Shut up!" Touzouku snarled, stomping over to his horse and flinging Marik over the saddle.

"I don't want to ride!" Marik cried, scrambling up into a side-saddle position, before going stock still, glaring sideways at the horse beneath him. Aswad turned to regard Marik with a type of content, before snorting, velvety nostrils flaring. His lips pulled back, and he made a snickering noise, before facing forward once more.

"You need to get used to riding," Akefia snarled. "And scoot forward, to the very front of the saddle."

"Why do I need to!" Marik argued, not scooting forward in the least bit. He stood completely still, and ignored Bakura snickering in the background, and Ryou's exasperated sigh. Akefia grumbled something, before coming up behind Marik, and pressing on the small of Marik's back, scooting the boy forward across the saddle.

After that, he jumped atop the horse, thighs settling around Marik's hips as he held the boy stationary. His arms encircled Marik, wrapping the boy in a protective shell of cloth and muscle, as he grabbed the reigns.

Marik frowned, not really enjoying all the close contact that he wasn't used to.

"You need to learn to ride, because you're going to have to come back here with me again. And, on top of that, this is the only way we get around," Akefia replied, before snapping the reings, and causing the horse to begain a trot.

Sighing with defeat, Marik flopped his head back against Akefia's chest. He was still pissed about this whole thing, and the fact that Akefia had left him to die... But at least Bakura had saved him, right?

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 4: Chapter 4:Down We Go<strong>**

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><p>"We'll stop at that water hole over there," Akefia grumbled, snapping the reigns, and urging Aswad forward. The stallion made no sounds of protest, and kept up his steady pace. Marik was leaning against him, fast asleep, curled up practically in the larger man's lap. It made Akefia feel uncomfortable, but he wasn't about to rouse the annoying child.<p>

Bakura turned slightly in his saddle, and gave a wicked grin to his brother ."Look at the king, harboring our little whore, all to himself!" the albino chastised, though from his tone, Akefia could tell he was merely jealous that Marik wasn't currently sucking him off.

"Shut up," Akefia barked, leading Aswad's head in the general direction, so the rest of the body would fall. Marik, beneath his arms, gave a muffled groan, and shifted slightly. Akefia had to wonder how the boy could fall asleep so easily!

"He should make that noise more often," Bakura teased, pulling his horse up short, trotting along side Akefia. "And look at that sleeping face, ah, he's so rapeable," Bakura purred, grin curling his face.

"Bakura, quit being a perv!" Ryou admonished, from off to the side. Akefia craned his neck, and could see their youngest sibling watching on with polite disinterest, though a slight amusement flickered within his amber eyes.

"You really should behave," Akefia stated simply, before urging his horse faster, leaving Bakura and his mare to trail along behind him. "By the way... If we're keeping this stupid boy, he'll need a horse. When is Aziza having her foal?" He questioned.

"Sometime this week," Ryou assured. "And that's quite sweet of you," the whittete continued quite cheekily, a smirk workings its way onto his soft face. Akefia flipped him off, before snapping the reigns harder, continuing to push Aswad faster.

His cheeks weren't flushed by the thought of Marik, but he did feel a slight annoyance that he was being teased about liking a boy he just met! That wasn't even possible, right? How could you like someone you just met hours ago, and that cut open your face?

Oh, yes, that had been fun describing to Ryou and Bakura.

The former insisted that it was Akefia's fault for attacking Marik, whereas the latter couldn't quit laughing and insisting that Marik was 'a scrapper', and that Akefia should be proud to have such a beautiful, lovely boy sleeping in his lap.

Groaning, Akefia glared hatefully at the sands. sometimes, he really disliked his annoying brothers. He could never bring himself to hate them, no matter how idiotic and pompous they may be, but they sure as hell did irk his nerves at times.

Running a hand through his sloppy mop of hair, he let out a breath of relief as they finally reached the pool's edge. The body of water stretched a few feet out, probably only reaching the depth of Akefia's chest, meaning it would be at Ryou and Bakura's necks. Grinning slightly, he thought about the misfortune that would bring them, and confidently roused Marik, ready to see the boy flounder about as well.

"Get up," Akefia commanded, voice rough as he shook Marik's shoulder, and, in return, the boy's body. Letting out a muffled noise, Marik's eyes cracked open, and Akefia watched as hands immediately shot up, hoping to block out the harsh sunlight streaming in throug his fingers, no doubt blinding his still sensitive eyes.

Laughing, the thief gripped Marik's hips, and sat the boy up straight. Marik let out a disgruntled noise from being touched, but righted himself, allowing Akefia to slide off of Aswad's sweat slicked back.

Marik peered over the edge of the horse, and let out a cry as he saw the sand beneath him. He really did not even want to attempt that, was what his facial expression screamed as he looked up at Akefia, a type of desperation in his wide eyes.

Rolling his own, Akefia grabbed Marik by the back of his shirt.

"Honestly, are you useful for anything?" the thief grumbled, not caring how rude or mean he sounded as he jerked Marik off the saddle. Once soundly upon the ground, Marik let out a snarl, and glared angrily at Akefia, lips twisted into a sneer.

"I was pretty good at fighting off the Tenebrae, when you ran like a coward! I was pretty good and cutting open your cheek, and tying you to a chair!" Marik argued, hands balling into fists at his side. Akefia reared back, and his lips pushed down into an angry frown.

Slamming his eyes closed, he ignored the humiliating claps of Bakura off to the side, and Ryou's minor giggles. He heard his brothers dismounting their horses, and they quickly made their way over to Marik and Akefia, Ryou making sure no fight happened, and Bakura sneaking up behind Marik, groping the boy's ass and wrapping an arm around the others waist.

Marik made noises of protest, and squirmed away from Bakura, skipping back over to Akefia, seeing as he knew Touzouku better then either of the white haired twins. Ryou merely laughed, and moved towards the water. He was to pale to strip down, so he kept his heavy clothes atop his body, and sloshed into the water, giving a patient smile as he felt the cool water lapping at his calves.

Marik stared after him, and eyed the water apprehensively. Akefia rolled his eyes at Marik's hesitation, and moved forward himself, removing his large cloak. He kept his sarong in place, seeing as it would dry well enough soon after, and began wading in himself. While he and Ryou weren't in as bad a shape as the blood caked Marik and Bakura, they still had grit, dirt, and blood spattered all about their persons.

"C'mon sweetheart," Bakura purred, thumping Marik on the back, and moving forward himself, removing all his clothes but the under part of his tunic still held in place. Funny, Marik didn't even know that that was possible...

Heaving a sigh, Marik shuffled forward, and began stripping down. He ignored the dubious, and avid, looks he gained from the three brothers. Soon, Marik was standing before them, naked, not even thinking twice as he moved forward, the tips of his toes touching the water.

"It's cold," he complained, brow furrowing as he glared at the water.

"Oh, no," Bakura whispered, staring straight at Marik with a scary amount of intensity. "It's very very hot."

"Bakura," Akefia growled, "why don't you submerge yourself before you poke someone's eye out?" The thief was looking pointedly at the thing between his brother's legs, and Marik stared at it too, confusion evident on his features. He couldn't really see 'it' due to the bottom of the tunic, but he could see enough to understand what it was.

"How did yours do that?" Marik questioned, a hand moving to his mouth, fingers drumming along his chin. Bakura's face flushed slightly, and he dunked down under the water, glaring mutinously at Akefia.

The thief merely smirked, whereas Ryou just waded deeper into the water, shaking his head and rolling his eyes at his brothers' stupidity. Marik moved closer into the water, and rocketed himself onto tip toe, peering down on the water's surface to Bakura.

"Oh look, it's gone now," Marik observed.

Bakura let out an irritated noise, and slid farther back into the water, making angry noises as he slunk down farther, white skin being popped up by his spine as his shoulders worked, white hair streaming out behind him, like a snake atop the surface of the water.

"How did he do that?" Marik asked, swiveling around to face Akefia. The thief blinked, and looked at Marik, before fidgeting and becoming awkward. The truth was, Akefia had never really seen other men naked, aside from his brothers. Nor had he ever slept with anyone, aside from one woman that he'd met, drunk, at a bar one night. Seeing this non-family boy before him made him feel weird things that he couldn't quite identify.

"Just don't worry about it," Akefia grumbled, before finally asking, "and why the hell are you naked?" He glared at the blonde, keeping his gaze focused solely up on the startling lavender eyes, and never looking lower for fear of those odd feelings returning.

"This is how you bathe," Marik stated, nose wrinkling up as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I think it's weird that you're staying clothed," he continued, waving an arm in the air, before dunking beneath the water, tendrils of blonde splaying out, haloing his face beneath the water as he rubbed at his chest and body, dispelling some of the dried green substances.

Akefia sunk lower himself, feeling the water rise up to his shoulders as he felt his bottom settle down ont he sandy floor, causing the stuff to rise up from the bottom, dirtying the area about him.

He scraped his fingernails over the blood, and scooped up some water, splashing it across his face, and cleaning out his scar just a bit. He watched Marik out of the corner of his eye, keeping his peripheral on the smaller boy, wondering just when he'd submerge for air.

Not to long after he thought that, Marik shot up from the water, spewing out the contents, before rushing towards Akefia.

"Touzouku!" He called, surprising the thief as he drew closer, knees smacking against Akefia's own. "Touzouku," Marik panted, "we need to get out of the water!" Akefia just stared at the frantic blonde boy in front of him. Marik made a noise of irritation, and slapped his hands down atop Akefia's thighs, drawing the thief's attention back to him.

"Why do we need to get out?" Akefia questioned, not moving, and clearly doubting Marik. Perhaps he'd seen a fish and just got scared, after all? He wasn't going to evacuate the place just on the words of a babbling little boy that had never been to the surface world before.

"Because!" Marik shouted, frustration creeping into his voice at Akefia not heeding his words. "There's a-"

Marik's voice was cut off by a loud scream.

Three heads snapped upwards, towards the back of the oasis, where they could see a streak of white hair disappearing beneath the water, along with a clawed hand, forked up the sky in one final, desperate attempt to dig its nails into the surface, clinging to the world above.

"RYOU!" Akefia roared, launching himself from beneath the water as he stumbled forward, knees sloshing through the water as he moved forward, quickly rushing for the spot where his brother had gone under. Bakura was already there, casting frantically about, running his hands beneath the surface, and attempting to find where Ryou could've possibly disappeared to.

"You won't find him that way," Marik said behind them, situated simply behind them, not bothering to sift through the water. Both Touzoukus turned to look at him, both inquisitive and slightly suspicious of the blonde boy's behavior.

"What do you mean?" Akefia demanded, eyes narrowing hatefully as he glared at Marik. He didn't really want to trust the boy, but at the moment, he had to, seeing as his youngest brother had just seemingly disappeared beneath the shallow, still water.

"A Cupio got him," Marik went on to explain, and ignored the two brothers' confused gazes. He turned his back slightly, and Akefia noticed, for the first time, the odd designs there. Ever since they'd entered the water, Marik's back had never face them, or he'd been submerged within the depths. Now, Akefia could see the water leaking into the engraved marks, and it made him curious as to the reason behind it.

Right now, however, he had more important thing then a boy's scarred up back to worry about.

"A Cupio is a water demon," Marik continued on, wading his way deeper into the water, pushing past Bakura and Akefia. He looked around, and pursed his lips. "From what I read, they generally have a small pearl hidden somewhere beneath the lake," Marik stated, and turned back to the brothers, who were staring at him, dumbfounded.

"What?" Marik questioned, glaring at the two men. "We need to get a move on before they eat your brother!" he shouted, hoping to snap them out of their trance. And indeed he did, for they quickly shook themselves, and looked desperately at Marik, who was the only one who knew what was going on.

"How long do we have?" Akefia growled, fists clenching at his sides.

Marik responded with a grave, unmotivating look. "By the time the sun sets," Marik stated simply, eyes scanning the horizon behind the larger man. Akefia grimaced, and twisted his head just a bit, Bakura following his lead. They could see the sun already dipping lower and lower, tinging the sky a brilliant pink, bringing to mind the color of dried, spattered blood, and ripped up corpses, which is what Ryou would most likely be soon.

Heaving a sigh, Akefia moved forward, and planted himself next to Marik, eyes narrowing slightly. "All right," he stated, "what does this pearl look like?"

Marik paused, and gnawed at his lip. "There were never pictures," He answered, "but there were vivid descriptions. It's the size of a small pebble," the blonde recited, eyes closing as he recalled the script he'd absorbed it from. "And all about it the water will shimmer and pulse with the rainbows hue. But one will only see it when their hands graces the surface."

Akefia frowned. "So we're going to have to scrabble around on hands and knees beneath the water until we touch it?" he demanded.

Marik offered a shrug. "I guess we better get started then."

With an irritated snarl, Akefia submerged himself beneath the water, Bakura following suit. Marik dunked under as well, and scrabbled around. At first, he kept feeling their limbs knock and lock together, along with someone's hair in a very bad place, before they were finally separated enough to not bump anymore.

Feeling along the sandy bottom, Marik kept his eyes cracked slightly, not enjoying the feel of grit pressing continuously against them. He hoped that the rainbow light would pulse beneath his fingers, and the light would attack even his closed lids, but he refused to risk it. Ryou was in trouble, and he had to help. The Touzouku had been nice to him, after all.

Marik felt the sand sift between his fingers, and the pads of his digits brushed slightly against the stones beneath, but none pulsed. When bubbles finally popped before his mouth, Marik finally rocketed towards the surface, head breaking into the open air as he threw his head back, gasp clearing his throat, and giving him much needed oxygen.

Clutching at his burning chest, he watched Bakura erupt from beneath as well, and waddled his way over to Marik, before grabbing the blonde roughly by the shoulders, and giving him a slight shake. Marik made a noise, but held his ground, ignoring how terrifying Bakura looked with his white hair plastered about his face, eyes wide and deranged as drool slivered from between his lips.

"Did you find anything?" he croaked, peering at Marik from behind bangs, searching the tanned boy's face for any deception or hints on his brother.

Marik pursed his lips, and shook his head, his own sopping wet bangs slapping uncomfortably at his cheeks as he watched Bakura let out a low snarl.

"Where's Touzouku?" Marik demanded, looking around, scanning the water's surface. Surely he should be breaking for air soon?

Sure enough, bubbles began to rise, and both Marik and Bakura shuffled back, watching as a grey mop of hair erupted from the water. Marik couldn't hold back a giggle, despite the serious situation, at the sight of the prideful Akefia in such a state, his hair slumped and dripping about his rugged features.

Akefia let out a breath of air, and sent his heavy bangs fluttering, before giving the other two a cocky smirk. "I found the stone," he breathed, obviously still catching his breath. "I touched it," he gasped, "and it lit up with the colors of the rainbow." Swiping his hair from his eyes, he regarded them. "So what now?"

Marik crossed his arms, and closed his eyes once more. "When you find the stone, you must have all you wish to take with you maintain physical contact with your body. Place you hand upon it, and keep it there for twenty seconds. When done, you shall awaken in a strange world that only your imagination could possibly conjure up."

Akefia nodded, before looking down at the water. "Everybody remain physical then," he commanded, giving a nervous glance to the slipping disk in the sky. It was almost down to the horizon, ready to brush against it.

Marik slid forward, pressing his hip into Akefia's, not bothered in the least by the physical contact. Akefia's face flushed slightly as he felt the other boy's naked body bump up against him, but he quickly dismissed it.

He needed to get to Ryou.

Bakura moved forward as well, and grabbed Marik around the waist. Together, they dunked down, staying linked as they were led by Akefia further down. Marik cracked his eyes open, and clung tighter to the thief as the man sifted his hands through sand, before finally grasping something.

Immediately, Marik's vision was sparking with bright hues of colors, and he felt Bakura's nails digging into his hip. Akefia pulled him in tighter, and they all clung there for a moment, before the ribbons of light snapped, and Marik felt a sensation as if he was being slung.

Mouth opened in a silent scream, Marik felt himself propelled into nothingness as he clung all that much tighter to Touzouku-ou.

-(-o-)-

**I was initially going to put two chapters together but uh... Adding to the suspense and all that shit.**

**Please review.**

**See ya.**

**(Marik's the Hermione Granger of this story.)  
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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Water World<strong>**

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><p>Groaning, Akefia rose a hand to his head, and gripped at his forehead, feeling a small throbbing back behind his temple. Fingers hesitating over top the skin, he blinked as he felt dry bangs beneath the pads of his fingers. For some reason that he couldn't quite remember, he knew that it shouldn't be that way.<p>

Frowning, he cracked his eyes open, and peered about, just to make a startled noise. He was sitting amidst a room that smelled strongly of citrus fruit, the beautiful tang almost edible on the air as he slowly rose up, bare feet feeling the carpet between his toes. Staring down, he saw he was in tight leather britches that he didn't remember ever having owned in his life.

Breath quickening, he looked to the walls, eyes narrowing critically. He surveyed the area even more in detail, as a thief always should, not moving from the spot lest it be a trap. The walls around him were a soft lavender color, off-setting the black carpet rather nicely. Strung about the room were golden tapestries that glistened from the candle lights, all hoisted up into the claws of several candelabras.

The only furniture in the room was a large bed at the back, purple sheets visible even from this far back. Crimson pillows resided atop the sheets, clashing awfully with the surrounding colors, but causing a strangely pleasing effect with the splash of color amidst the sea of soft purple hues.

Narrowing his eyes, Akefia slid forward thoughtfully, moving towards the bed. Something was telling him to move towards it, and, though slightly wary, he decided it could be the inner thief in him, telling him that this bed held some type of treasure.

So, tip-toeing closer, he moved towards the piece of furniture, drawing ever nearer, and he was given the pleasure of viewing the engravings on the headboard. From here, it appeared to be a man, rising up from a darkened castle with rather large wings erupting from his shoulder blades. Within his hold was a woman, though not screaming as a maiden in distress should be. Something at the back of his mind twitched, and he felt as if that castle was familiar.

It consisted of several large spires, uncommon square turrets residing atop, with the patterns of die painted onto them. The carver of the wood had obviously had an affinity to detail, for several monsters resided on the outside of the castle, of all sizes, be they big or small, with impetuous attention to their scales and wings.

"Do you like it?" a silken voice questioned softly behind him, and Akefia whirled about, startled out of his mind, but quickly masking it. A thief couldn't show that they were scared. That was a mistake, and mistakes led to death.

Sucking in his breath, he glared at this new adversary, but had his breath stolen, yet again, as he viewed who it was.

Marik stood before him, legs spread wide as he grinned up at Akefia, sharp purple eyes glittering behind fluttering lashes. It was Marik, the annoying boy, for sure, but something was... _Off_ about him.

His eyes were to sharp, to clear, and his lashes were a tad bit too long. His usually normal, sandy colored hair was now an luscious golden color, and perfectly framed his face, each bang tip just teasingly brushing the caramel skin in a way the Marik Akefia knew could never pull off.

The blonde before him's outfit consisted of a tight red corset, showing off a full figure, and even more of that oddly appealing body. Akefia tried to focus on Marik's face, but it was hard to do with long, fishnet clad legs before him, ending abruptly in stiletto heels. A knowing smirk stretched its way across Marik's face, and Akefia felt his blood rush in a different direction.

Marik's tongue darted out, and he whetted his lips, looking purposefully up at Akefia through lidded eyes. "Do you want this?" the blonde whispered. Shock ran through Akefia's body, and he immediately went onto the defensive.

"Want what?" he demanded, glaring at Marik. The blonde seemed unperturbed, however, and merely stood there, one hip jutting out just bit more then the other as he regarded the suspicious thief. "Weren't we doing something anyway?" Akefia growled, feeling a pounding in his head again.

He knew they had been doing something! And it was _wrong_ for Marik and him to be all snug and warm in here. Something kept plucking at the back of his mind, but for the life of him he could not remember!

Gritting his teeth, he focused back in on Marik, preparing to shoot an assault of questions towards the boy. Marik, however, was moving his arm, so in return his hand. It slid upwards, one single digit touching softly to Akefia's lips, before trailing the outer rim of them.

"Why don't you lay back," Marik whispered, sliding forward, pressing his body sensually against Akefia's. The thief made a broken noise, and stumbled back, not quite sure what was happening. He was, however, now laying atop the bed, supported only by his elbows, with his legs spread wide open.

"There's a good boy," Marik giggled, stepping forward, he slid onto Akefia's lap, causing the man beneath him to groan with longing. Shifting his hips just a bit, Marik extracted yet another pleasurable noise from the lips of the thief.

All thoughts of anything he should've previously been doing were gone, out the window, without even so much as a good-bye wave. His body was to preoccupied with Marik's moving atop him.

"Mm," Marik grinned, tongue shooting out as he dipped down lower to Akefia's bare chest. He began planting supple kissing along the thief's abs, causing Akefia's arms to give out. With defeat, he fell back, letting out sharp cries from the pleasure. Never before had he been touched like this, but what was currently transpiring in his britches, he knew.

Gulping, he wondered how far Marik would take this, and if Akefia would even stop him. Right now, that gorgeous blonde, with his pert little ass hovering just above a certain area, was in control. And while he looked different, Akefia supposed that could've all been due to him finally taking a bath! It was plausible, really.

The kisses finally reached his collarbone, before traveling up his neck. Marik was making little noises of want as well now, with his sharp little canines nibbled their way up Akefia's muscular neck.

"Have you ever made love to a man, Kefi?" Marik questioned softly. Opening his mouth, the thief thought to answer no, but his mind seized up at the small nickname.

Kefi.

Only one person ever called him Kefi, and it sure as hell wasn't Marik. Snarling, Akefia looked down into Marik's angry, slitted eyes. With an abrupt hiss, the not-Marik drew back, sliding along the bed. He still looked beautiful, and quite pleasing to the eye, but now Akefia didn't want him.

Marik quickly clambered off the bed, and slid backwards, back pressing against a nearby wall. "My master will hear of this!" the blonde shrieked. Akefia didn't know what the hell the thing was talking about, but he certainly didn't want to find out.

"Touzouku!" A voice shouted, and Akefia gave a jerk, realizing Marik's true, annoying voice. Letting out a sigh of relief, he cast a frantic gaze about. The not-Marik, off to the side, merely glared hatefully at the floor.

"Your friends call to you, for now," the blonde hissed, "but just know... Temptation will never release you."

-(-o-)-

"Touzouku!" Marik shouted, pawing at Akefia's broad shoulders as he shook the man. Akefia's gray hair was splayed about his face, the picture of perfect innocence, and dare he even say despair? Even in their blue tinted surroundings, the scar seemed to shine with a wicked color, and Marik glared pointedly at it, before returning to awakening the thief.

Bakura was off to the side, staring about his surroundings, clearly in awe. Marik had wanted to stop and observe as well, but he figured Bakura would be better and taking in all this, whereas Marik would just be to overly excited, and lead them somewhere they shouldn't go.

"Touzouku!" he shouted on final time, bubbles erupting from his lips as he gave a vicious jerk. The fluttering of eyelids told Marik all he needed to know, and he quickly flopped back, hair going up in a blonde cloud as he did.

Akefia groaned, and sat up, before taking into fact that bubbles had just escaped him. Blinking in surprise, he looked stoically at Marik, head tilting slightly. To Marik, it looked as if he were recovering from a rather scary dream.

"Are we under water?" Akefia questioned, looking about, though he could clearly tell, as well as Marik could, that their voices worked fine, and breath was coming quite naturally to them. Grinning sheepishly, Marik nodded, and rose up from his seated position on the sandy floor.

"Yes, but that's not important right now," a harsh voice interrupted, and Bakura was soon beside Marik, hips almost brushing the blonde's. Marik blinked, and saw that Akefia looked vaguely uncomfortable as he looked pointedly at the touching hips.

"That's right, we need to find Ryou," Marik muttered, looking around him. He could feel stares focusing in on him, however, and turned to regard the two brothers. "What?" he demanded, not enjoying this strange attention.

"You can't just..." Bakura frowned, pursing his lips. Akefia knew that Bakura probably couldn't care less if Marik ran around naked or not, but it was bringing up bad thoughts for the Thief King. Standing up himself, Akefia looked around, but saw nothing in the surrounding area that could serve as clothes. He did, however, finally take a look about him.

He honestly couldn't believe they were beneath the small lake they'd been bathing in! It was impossible! He did know, however, that all his hair floating about his face was really starting to work his nerves.

All about him were types of coral, a myriad of colors, with tendrils of seaweed rolling between them. For moments, he could see the flickers of fish shooting in between the coral bits. Mouth popping open slightly, Akefia leaned forward, hair shooting back and twirling about behind him.

"We're in a different world," Marik said simply, looking around. Bakura was chewing at his lip, staring down at a certain part of Marik. "The book said we'd wake up in a world only our dreams could conjure up, after all."

"So this is the world of those... Cupees?" Akefia demanded, staring wildly about him, searching for the things that had taken his brother. Marik merely sighed, and shook his head.

"No. And they're Cupios," Marik corrected. Walking to the side, he grabbed a bundle of seaweed, and shot Bakura a dirty look. He strung them all together swiftly as he talked, wasting on time in tying the seaweed about his waist. Honestly, he was just sick of Bakura's too-interested looks. "The Cupios are merely denizens of this world," Marik continued on, striding back up to the others. "I can't say for sure what else lives here, so we need to be on guard, and hurry." Peering up, he studied what could only be assumed the surface of the water, high above their heads.

"We don't know their lunch schedule," Akefia tacked on. Though unnecessary, it did seem to shock the trio enough to start walking, straining against the water and digging their heels into the sand, heading forwards towards that unknown place.

"We're underwater," Bakura stated suddenly.

"Thank-you, Sir Obvious. Care to tell us that we're breathing as well?" Akefia snarled back, to which Bakura gave him a dirty look. Huffing irritably, the albino merely crouched down, at which point Marik and Akefia paused to watch him shoot up into the water, where he flailed his arms, and eventually leveled his body out, parallel to the sandy ground.

Marik and Akefia stared, as Bakura began kicking his feet, and moving his arms, propelling him forward through the water. "I can see something!" he shouted, though, pausing in his swimming to look down at the people waiting below him. "There's like a small village!"

"A village underwater?" Akefia demanded incredulously, kicking off from the bottom, and shooting up towards Bakura. He actually found it quite easy, once there, to float. Apparently the water complied to ones' commands, unlike real water. You could walk and crawl along the bottom easily, but swimming was an option as well.

"We're breathing underwater," Marik called from below. "It's plausible! Tell me what you see!"

Akefia peered straight ahead ,and saw what Bakura himself had seen.

Farther away, cresting the sand dunes and coral trees that had been blocking their view on the ground, the brothers could now easily spot what did in fact appear to be a village. A straight, narrow road began a bit ahead, and was made of large pearls, glistening even in these depths, as they cobbled the way up to the village, and led through it.

Simplistic as it was, it had an air of beauty about it. There was merely one road, and rows of large, multi-colored sea and conch shells stretched out before them. They all had small door cut into them, and were all currently agape, giving slight flashes of what could've appeared as furniture or halls.

There was one house that differed, and that was a large, monstrous clam that was set at far back of the village. It, however, was gaping open too, revealing a soft pink tongue, decorated with golden, glistening things that, while he didn't know what they were exactly, made Akefia's fingers twitch.

There wasn't much for furniture in that particular house, though there was a dolphin skinned rug, or so it appeared, spread out across the tongue. The clam's purple inside were flashing at them as it bobbed about in the waves, almost resembling a small kite caught in gusts of air.

All about the clam, some forms of people were gathered. Akefia could tell, even from back here, that they were an odd bunch, and not natural. But that wasn't what captured his attention.

What did was the fact that a flash of white was given off amidst those oddly colored people. With vicious snarl, he turned to regard Bakura, giving his brother a silent nod, showing that he, to, saw Ryou.

Rattling off a few of the details to their waiting companion, Marik nodded sagely, and kicked off from the ground, flailing frantically. He had never really swum before, but he'd often splashed about in the tub, which he considered basically the same thing.

He was horrendously wrong, of course, but he soon righted himself, and managed to float amidst the moving waves. "The water caters to our needs?" he questioned, looking at Akefia with a raised, dubious eyebrow.

"I think so," he affirmed, before pointing forward. "But not all our needs. They still have my brother," he snarled. "Can you swim good enough to keep up?"

"I can try," Marik admitted, wanting to make no promises, but also wanted to slightly reassure the stressed thief. Peddling forward, he flattened himself out. He remembered, once, reading a book mention a doggy paddle for beginners. Doing as the book said, he churned his hands, and shot forward, hair streaming behind him as the brothers quickly followed behind.

Akefia reached him first, and kept pace with him, watching Marik from the corner of his eyes. "How do you know so much?" he demanded, staring at the blonde, trying to figure out how such an ignorant boy could know so much!

"I've read books," Marik responded, keeping his gaze straight forward. "There was never much to do in that tomb, so I read to keep myself busy. Plus, my father always considered reading to be especially important." Akefia merely nodded, and looked away. He'd been taught to read, but he'd only shown Ryou and Bakura the basics of it, just enough to where they could read a map, or a sign.

Their vocabulary was generally pretty good, but when reading they generally stuttered and stumbled over words, and gained headaches. As for Akefia, he just didn't like reading. Or, he was never especially good at it. Reading meant sitting still, and Akefia just couldn't do that for the long periods of time it took to muddle through the words. He much preferred action, and being able to move at anytime.

Marik observed that he made no comment, and continued talking, "To my understanding, Cupios are like Merpeople." He looked imploringly at Akefia, to see if the grey haired man knew of what he was talking about. Judging by the mystified expression, though, Marik could figure it out well enough on his own.

"Merpeople," Marik began still kicking his legs and churning his arms before him," are fish-people. They tend to have human bodies from the waist up, and have fish tail from the waist down. There's a lot of debate between stories if they're pretty or not," Marik finished, looking to Akefia. The thief merely looked passively at Marik, still swimming.

"Merpeople aren't an interesting subject," Bakura interjected moodily from behind them, lagging behind even the lesser experience Marik. Both dark-skinned men craned their necks, catching a glimpse of the irritated Bakura.

"It doesn't matter how interesting it is," Akefia shot back, cutting off whatever protest Marik had even considered giving. "We need to know all we can to save Ryou."

"Then tell the book worm to give us some information that'll be useful!" Bakura snapped back. "Seeing how lovely you two are together up there, that should be easy for you to convince him otherwise!"

Akefia growled, and stopped swimming, whirling around to face Bakura. "You've been eye-humping him since he joined us!" he shouted, eyes narrowing dangerously as his fists bunched together at his hips. "So why don't you shut up, Touzouku-ji," he hissed irritably.

Bakura let out a low snarl, that sounded incredibly like a pissed off cat. Lurching forward, he moved his hands as fast as he could, but the water slowed him down. Hoisting the pale limbs up, he attempted to move forward and strangle Akefia.

Marik shot forward, though, shoving his body between the two boys. Akefia made a squawk as Marik's ass rubbed against him, and he was plagued with vague, delicious memories of a crimson corset, and long, beautiful legs.

Marik placed his hands up, and pressed them to Bakura's chest, halting the pale boy's motions, and causing all three of them to come to a screeching stop, floating in an awkward formation as Bakura calmed down.

"You done now?" Marik barked, glaring into the pale man's face. Bakura at least had the decency to look at him. While not abashed, he did seem slightly uncomfortable, though his was small potatoes compared to Akefia in the back. The thief knew good and well that he could let go, and float away from Marik's tantalizing backside, but yet he held still.

"I'm done," Bakura spat mutinously, and pulled away from Marik's arms.

"Good," Marik stated, glaring at the Touzouku, "because thanks to you two's stupid spat, we wasted some more time that could've been spent saving your brother." Bakura made a startled noise, but Marik ignored him, and turned back around, confronting the uncomfortable thief behind him.

"Let's get back to swimming."

The rest of their swim was uneventful, though their eyes were certainly strained, peering at the cloud of hair that was billowing out behind the people clammering around the clam. None of them paid the intruders the smallest bit of attention, for clearly they were preoccupied with who, they assumed, was Ryou.

Staring down, Marik peered past his dangling toes, and wondered how on Earth they'd get back down. Bakura was holding no such qualms, and was currently flipping himself upside down, hands keeping his kilt from falling down over his hips. He slowly began pushing his legs, waving them about as he propelled himself downwards. Sharing looks, Akefia and Marik followed suit.

Touching down on the sand, they trekked slowly up to the pearls, and slid up onto them. The pearls were glistening, soft pink and purple hues, that seemed to be constantly shifting, giving quite the odd feel as they settled their feet down atop them, bare soles slipping against the soft, rounded surfaces.

Moving forward, they moved past the daunting shells clambering high above them. It had been one thing, back all those yards away, to peer distantly down upon the Cupios homes, and deem themselves quite able to face the Merpeople.

Up close now, however they realized that these houses were much bigger then they initially thought.

"This is eerie," Marik mumbled quietly, scooting closer to Akefia, sifting through the water uneasily. He didn't like the way all their hair seemed to be floating around them either. For some reason, the ethereal halos seemed to give everything a darker, more savage twist to it, and cause things to become even scarier, giving Marik white, flashing hot memories of whispered voices, broken promises, and the smell of old food being stacked into a room with him as desperate wails broke his peaceful sleep.

Gritting his teeth, he took his lips between the bone, and began gnawing on it. Akefia, beside him, wasn't bothered in the least. He did, however, notice Marik's irritated state, and regarded the boy curiously from his peripheral vision. Thinking back, he thought of how much Marik calmed down when he was reciting knowledge. Sucking in a deep, cooling breath, he opened the corner of his mouth so as to speak to Marik without disturbing the Cupios up ahead.

"How do we get to the surface once we have Ryou?" Akefia questioned, eying Marik's slender form, and the impromptu clothes the boy had fashioned for himself. The boy was ignorant, but smart, and Akefia could only hope he was just smart enough.

"I have no idea," Marik replied grimly, "we're just going to have to wing it."

-(-o-)-

**Okay... I'm still debating the rating. If it needs to go up, I'll bump it up, because it's probably going to get worse. It'll be nothing entirely explicit, just mere touches and heavily hinted at things... Uh, if you guys think it needs to go up, I'll certainly do as such.**

**And yes, just so you all know, it is indeed more Adventure then Romance.  
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**Other then that, please review!**

**See ya!**

**(**these chapters always seem so long when I'm writing them, but they're actually uber short.. T.T)**  
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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Friends<strong>**

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><p>Akefia slid his back against the side of one of the conch houses, not bothering to stop and admire the intricate details that had been carved into the sides, no doubt reflecting something or another that dealt with this realm. No, no, his focus lay elsewhere, and he hunched over, eying his target.<p>

Blinking his eyes slowly, he regarded the area. Those strange creatures - Cupios - were all crowded about his brother, hands moving in purple and blue flashes of color as long, liquid like hair slid about them, wrapping upon each other like the writhing snakes of a trap pit. A tongue crept out, and he slid it along his lips, observing them, before allowing his gaze to pass over them all, and to identify the two shadows occupying the houses adjacent to him.

Marik was crouched down behind a nearby rock, hands gripping at the algae slicked surface. His fingers were kneading at it softly, and he was looking nervously about, clearly not to sure about this whole thing. Bakura was next to him, however, and was rumbling what, from this point, looked like protests to the blonde boy's anxiety.

Ignoring the two, he shuffled slightly, the soles of his feet sinking ever deeper into the sand as he moved. He watched the grit rise up, and his hair floated higher about his face. Swatting some of the bunches of hair away, he moved forward, belly crawling his way about the edge, and bringing him ever closer to his brother.

-(-o-)-

"Quit moving so much," Bakura mumbled to Marik, not even sparing the lavender eyed kid next to him a fleeting glance. "We're going to give our positions away if you don't stop." With that, he slipped a pallid hand over Marik's, and squeezed it tight, glaring at the ignorant boy as he did.

Marik merely snorted, watching the bubbles erupt from his nostrils as he did so. He, of course, was not going to be Bakura's little bitch and bow down to the other man's words, but he did calm down, retracting his hand from Bakura's own.

Both sets of eyes now stay focused upon the writing forms of the Cupios, occasionally allowing their gazes to slip sideways, and observe the various conch homes that littered the area, vibrant colors splashing their way through the oceanic setting.

Suddenly, the beautiful view was interrupted, however, as a large rock was sent flying through the air, cutting through the water that, in their own universe, would've certainly been impossible.

But there the grey chunk went, racing through the place, and making a bee-line for the Cupios. Both Bakura and Marik took a sharp intake of breath, and awaited for the tell-tale crack of a fallen Cupio.

_Snap!_

Both boys' jaws dropped, and they stared, dumbfounded, as a stream of blood arose from a white head of hair. The Cupios had managed to twist about, bringing Ryou up into the line of fire that Akefia had started.

"Shit," Marik whispered, and Bakura reiterated the curse as the Cupios swirled about, revealing their true faces and forms to the teens. Each demon was a different color, the hues of their skin alternating and twisting within the rainbows of the water, nonexistent sunlight shooting its rays through the liquid to dance across their forms, illuminating them in a holy light.

Adding to the ethereal effect was their hair, which was long, apparently regardless of gender, seeing as the Cupios possessed none. Or, judging by their flat chests and genital areas, it was an invisible way of telling.

All of their beauty, however, was discarded instantly when one cast their gaze through the glistening skin and ribbon-like, floating hair, to spot the facial features of the cruel beings. They had deformed faces, that were more so dribbling blobs, constantly morphing and changing. Their mouths were mere gashes across their faces, never closing and constantly revealing jagged, umber teeth that grew to wicked points, with twists and curves enough to make one dizzy until reaching the haggard black gums.

A tongue slithered from between misshapen lips that were more so lumps of coal stacked on to the bubbling flesh. The slick muscle wagged in the area, almost giving off the appearance of high peeling laughter, but without the piecing noise to accentuate its dominating rule.

One Cupio, its rolling locks of pearl shimmering about its body, paused to allow its tongue to maneuver up the lumpy skin, stroking at what appeared to be the equivalent of eyes to these creatures, but were mere slit within the skin, with black markings drawn about them, tracing each curvature of the missing eyelid.

Sucking in a sharp breath, Marik clenched his eyes shut, and let a small tremor rack his body. He would not show fear when it came time for confrontation, but these beings, so much more enticing from far away, scared him even more then the terrifying Tenebrae, from just a day -possibly hours- before.

The worst part was that now, the Cupios' attention were certainly locked upon the troupe. Or, to be more specific, a certain man in their little collage of characters. For it had been Akefia, the fearsome Thief King, who had tossed the rock, snagging his own brother, quite by accident, in the head.

While another spurt of blood erupted into the water, the Cupios released Ryou, the small, unconscious boy sinking down to the sands amid the floating, elf like feet that pattered about the ground aside and around him.

Marik felt a memory of a book he'd read stir in his memory, something to do with all the blood Ryou was releasing... But it was immediately dislodged as a single Cupio extracted itself from the main group, and rushed to meet Akefia, slamming into the man with startling force for its small body, propelling the silver haired man backwards.

A scream of pain ripped itself from the thief's mouth as he was slammed into one of the sharp spikes of a conch home. Marik made a noise of surprise, but slid backwards, Bakura following his lead as the two boys shimmied behind their rock once more, watching Akefia with narrowed and cautious eyes.

"We can help him," Bakura mumbled to Marik, over the shrieks of the Cupios, watching as his brother received a vicious slash from the Cupio currently straddling him. "Just follow me."

-(-o-)-

Akefia screeched as the spike from the house collided with his spine, causing his body to snap and bend in ways that weren't incredibly comfortable, and only made more unbearable by the fact that a hundred and fifty pound monster was currently pressed against his chest, sharp nail digging into the bare skin of his chest.

Snarling, he felt a rush of water as the Cupio moved forward, jaw splitting open like that of a snake's as the bubbling, mutated skin stretched itself wide, giving off the appearance of fleshy joints to accommodate the newer design.

Reeling back in repulsion, Akefia drew his fist up high, slamming it into the Cupio's gut, and causing the demonic thing to fall backwards, flat body somersaulting over top itself in a pinwheel of hair and frantic limbs.

Panting, Akefia righted himself, and looked about. No doubt those two chicken shits that were supposed to be helping him had ran off when the Cupio had attacked. The thief, however, was not going down simply because he didn't have good back-up.

Gritting his teeth, he watched as the other Cupios watched him warily, not wanting to leave Ryou for some reason. He could understand them wanting to eat his brother, but one would think they would want to face an adversary instead.

Brushing that thought away, he saw the first Cupio rising up once more, hair a frightening mass surrounding its body almost like an opened shell. Clawed hands lifted upwards, and the creature launched itself forward again, a loud screech erupting from its mouth.

Akefia braced himself for the impact, but a flash of dull colors erupted into his vision, and the Cupio let out a fearsome cry as it was knocked off course by the projectile that had been launched into its middle, slamming it into the ground.

Widening his eyes in surprise, Akefia heard a shout of, "FUCK YEAH BITCHES!" before finally piecing together that Bakura had just launched Marik into the demonic, underwater creature, and that Marik now had the Cupio pinned down, and was crushing the lumpy head open with a rock.

With a noise of disgust, he saw that each smack of the rock got the stone lodged into the skin, before Marik had to jerk viciously upwards, ripping skin free from the Cupios skull. Again, again, and again, the rock was brought back down, breaking through the flesh and robbing the Cupio of its life.

The task done, Marik shot up, and skipped backwards, landing beside Akefia with a grim frown spread across his face as he eyed Ryou. Akefia could see something in the boy's eyes, something calm, calculating, and cold. He wasn't quite sure what to think of it, but he knew it didn't bode well.

"That Cupio is bleeding, too," Marik pointed out necessarily, and turned to look at Akefia, eyes flashing. Akefia frowned, and looked at the mangled corpse, before focusing on the Cupios. Their heads were pressed together, with urgent whispers of an unknown language resounding from their little group.

Bakura soon joined them, and settled down beside Marik, eying the monsters surrounding Ryou, waiting for them to make some sort of movement.

"We need to get to Ryou - and fast," Marik spoke up. Akefia turned to face the blonde, and narrowed his eyes readily at the boy, demanding elaboration. Marik's mouth opened to elaborate. "Well, with all the blood in the water, we're going to attract a-"

With a sharp movement a large rock was cracked into Marik's skull, and the boy dropped like a fly, slamming into the sand with a pitiful groan, and leaking more blood into the liquid air. Akefia and Bakura let out startled noises, and lurched backwards, leaving Marik to recuperate.

A loud shriek ripped the air, and one more Cupio rushed at them, leaving only two behind to guard Ryou. It rushed forwards, claws bared and ready as it lunged at them. Akefia reacted first this time, and reached behind him, hand grasping a spine of the conch home. With a jerk downwards, he ripped its free from its natural place, and lunched forward, baring the spike like a dagger.

Plunging it forwards, he stepped over Marik and slammed the spine through the Cupio's chest, causing the creature to scream and writhe, hands scrabbling frantically at the shard of the shell that impaled it, squealing as blood poured from the wound. Kicking the demon away, Akefia stumbled backwards, pausing to stop and scoop Marik up into his arms.

He could've tripped over the boy earlier, and they couldn't afford a fuck up down here. They didn't know the laws of this realm, and they had Ryou on the line. Clutching the barely conscious Marik to his chest, Akefia slid through the sand, and stared critically at the remaining two Cupios, choosing to ignore the corpses that littered the ground.

"I can stand on my own," came Marik's muffled voice, clearly unhappy with the fact that he was pressed against Akefia, the tips of his toes not even able to brush the sand. Akefia ignored him, however, and focused on the shuffling, irate Cupios.

Loud, hissing noises were leaving their mouths, and all about the three humans, the sounds of movement could be heard. All too soon, hundreds of faces were erupting from windows and doorways of the conch homes all about them, hair flying like flags as they peered about.

"Fuck me," Akefia mumbled, eyes widening as he stared, waiting for them all to attack. Marik's head lolled slightly, and he rested his cheek against Akefia's shoulder, jaw dropping in amazement as through a befuddled state of mind he took in what was happening all around him. Bakura, off to the side, was staring in a similar state, but unfortunately he was quite in his right mind -or, to better put it, his head hadn't been caved in by a well aimed projectile.

The two Cupios guarding Ryou let out booming calls, and immediately all the present Cupios streamed out of their homes. All three males caught in the middle of the maelstrom of aquatic creatures dived for the ground, Akefia dragging Bakura and Marik with them, before crushing the smaller boys to the ground beneath them, his body shielding them as the Cupios streamed over head.

Marik felt Akefia's chest crush into his face, and he placed his palms against the skin, making sure Akefia didn't drop down to far, and suffocate him. Some of Bakura's hair was already clogging up his nose, and he couldn't deal with having his mouth getting cut off from its oxygen -or whatever was working for them in this realm.

None of the Cupios stopped to attack them, however, and just soared over top, scrambling over each other in a mad dash to reach the shell that they had left earlier. They didn't even pause to scoop up their deceased, they merely packed themselves within the large clam, and when every last Cupio had been placed upon its large tongue, the door slammed shut, making them all disappear from view.

"That's not good," Marik whispered, finally gathering his bearings once more. Akefia finally sat up, face flushed in the slightest as he realized he'd just pegged the boy to the ground. The tone of Marik's voice, however, brought him crashing back down to reality. Bakura sat up as well, and fidgeted with his hair, eyes narrowing as he gazed at the seaweed clad boy.

"What do you mean?" Akefia demanded, rising up. Ryou had been left on his own, floating just milometers above the sand. Trudging forward, the thief moved to the small, frail boy, and scooped him up, spotting sunburn from before, and saw that some of the boy's wounds from the Tenebrae had been reopened, releasing blood into the water.

"We need to get back, now!" Marik barked, sitting up, and running a hand frantically through his hair. Akefia trotted back over, he and Bakura's faces showing both puzzlement. Marik was shaking his head frantically, however, whilst casting his gaze around, watching the shadows with wide eyes.

"You little brats!" A voice shrilled from above. All three boys whirled about, trying to catch sight of who had voiced the mysterious insult, but no person was forthcoming. "I hope you know you're swimming with the sharks!"

"Shit!" Marik cried, before turning to Akefia.

"What is it?" the thief demanded, snapping out one hand to grip roughly at Marik's biceps, ignoring the thoughts of his that flickered back to a dream filled with creamy skin and golden hair, mile long legs that welcomed him in close. Those thoughts couldn't invade his mind in this moment of urgency.

"My prediction was correct," Marik reported grimly, looking around, biting at his lip. "I'm guessing whoever owned that voice is gone... And she won't be returning. Not after what she just announced."

"Spit it out already!" Akefia snarled, getting irritated with the smaller boy's games. He was worried, and he needed to know, good and now, what was possibly coming their way, and how he could protect the other three children swarming about him. At that thought, he froze. Since when did Marik fall under his protection? But he wasn't given time to ponder over it as Marik was talking again.

"There's a creature that exists even within our own world, one that follows the scent of blood through miles of ocean, just to find a morsel," Marik stated through quivering lips, and his eyes flickered with fear as he spotted a far off distant shadow approaching rapidly. "This creature, when in other worlds, manages to manifest itself. Even rulers of the Realm come to fear these creatures, for they mutilate themselves to manage their surrounding, still racing to claim their position atop the food chain."

"We don't have time for this!" Bakura snapped, but Akefia was staring, entranced, at Marik. The boy clearly retained plenty of knowledge that would be helpful to a thief such as himself -that was why he kept the boy around. There was his justification. He didn't have feelings of friendship or otherwise to spare for the boy, merely a position that Marik needed to fill.

"For you see, these creatures are quite massive or small in size," Marik babbled on, hands rising up to point shakily at the shadow, mouth flying as he attempted to shoot the words out as fast as he could. "These creatures that we humans call Sharks."

Sure enough, as the smaller boy had claimed, high above them they could see the creamy belly of a massive, grotesque shark that had been blown incredibly out of proportion. Its fins churned the water about it, and its massive, magnified gills flared open, revealing soft pink skin within the slits.

It tilted onto its side, and with a might swing of its tail it slammed a conch shell away, ripping it free of its place in the sand, and sending some poor Cupios' home sprawling away. With that, the shark twirled its large body, managing to sway around to where its large jaws were soon facing the petrified thieves and tomb keeper.

Jaws snapped open, and teeth were placed upon display, glistening white in the light, as tendrils of drool broke themselves free to spindle away into the water, almost like a spider's detached web.

The pink tongue writhed between the canines, and a loud bellow followed, practically bursting the three humans' ear drums, and finally snapping Ryou awake. The whittete sat up cautiously in his brother's arm, and let out a loud shriek of terror as his umber eyes took on the fearsome sight of the large Shark.

"SWIM!" Marik screeched, and began paddling his legs and body. Akefia shot afterwards, dragging Ryou along behind him, with Bakura taking up the rear. They scrabbled up higher into the ocean, the shark, apparently dull witted, staring silently at the spot that they had occupied moments before, not being able to take in that its prey had left it.

Marik felt tears gather at the edges of his eyes, but he brushed them away in irritation. He couldn't afford to cry right now! Crying blurred his vision, and he was in dire need of it at the moment. Churning his arms, he looked down below his writhing body to see that the shark was attempting to rotate its body around. A flash of purple and gold resided next to it, and Marik paused momentarily to glare blearily down at whatever... That was.

It almost looked like a woman! A woman with blonde hair and... Wings?

Marik's train of thought was disrupted, however, as Akefia's arm slammed into Marik, dragging the boy up higher along with him. Marik yelped, and felt his person slam against Ryou's, and boy boy's were held in Akefia's protective grasp.

"Do you even know how to leave this realm?" Akefia demanded, glaring down at Marik. The blonde boy merely gave a hopeless shrug, and peered down at Bakura, who had spotted the woman as well.

"Just keep swimming to the surface," Marik commanded. It was the only thing he could think of, honestly, and they were already so close... Sighing, he peered to Ryou, who was staring about, clearly shaken.

"I-I'm sorry!" the white haired boy mumbled. "I swear! It wasn't intentional! I just heard these whispers about 'lure those brats my way' and then I felt someone grab my leg!" Gasping, Ryou ducked his head once more, and shuddered in Akefia's grasp.

"It wasn't on purpose, so just shut up," Akefia's voice boomed above, and he glared down at the two of them. "Now, Bakura! Status update on that shark!"

"It's getting whipped by some woman," Bakura replied, craning his neck and blinking as he saw the shimmering surface growing ever closer. "I don't know who she is but..." Letting loose a snarl, Bakura's hand hooked into claws. "I'm sure she's someone we'll see again. I think she was behind this attack."

"Then let that bitch find us," the eldest muttered, voice coming off in icy waves of anger. "Let the bitch touch one of you three again."

Marik blinked, and his eyes opened slightly, pointing at himself in a confused way. Akefia realized what he said, and opened his mouth to protect his ego, but his head hit the water's surface first.

He let out syllable of noise leave his throat, before he felt something snap taught around his waist, and he was suddenly launched forward, Ryou and Marik ripped from his grasp as all fours boys were catapulted upwards, all screaming in unison as they were slung through the surface, faces hitting a cold wall of air, before smacking roughly into a sandy beach.

Marik arose first, spitting out sand as he lifted his head up, swiping at the sand gathered along his eyelashes. Beside him, Akefia rested on his back, groaning with pain as he sat up, coughing and spitting up dirt all the while.

"Our clothes!" Ryou announced first, "and our horses!" Akefia and Marik both stared about, and realized that, indeed, Aswad and his lackeys were peering down at them, confusion swirling in their majorly emotionless eyes, heads cocked in the slightest.

"We're... Back at the beach we stopped at," Bakura grumbled, sitting up and pushing wet locks from his forehead. "Then let's get the fuck out of here!" All the others rose quickly, and scrabbled for their clothes, not even bothering with the sand caked in uncomfortable areas. They could deal with some minor thigh rashes, if to get away from the strange oasis that housed the Cupios' homes.

Marik tugged off his seaweed, and for once Bakura didn't stop to stare at him, to preoccupied was he with hoisting Ryou up onto the correct horse, and climbing atop his own mare. Akefia paused, though, and gave the boy a considerable glance over. But it wasn't the same as his dreams, somehow. This Marik didn't glow with beauty, nor did he seem to glisten and know how to make Akefia grow hard from just one glance.

Looking away, he tugged on his robe, and moved to his stallion. He patted Aswad lightly, before hopping up onto the horse, feet finding their way into the stirrups. Marik strode over then, and stared up at the imposing figure that was Akefia, made all the more so by the horse's own stature plus his.

"You are offering me protection as well then?" Marik questioned, not daunted in the slightest as he peered up through the dazzling sunlight to stare into the thief's narrowed eyes. He heard Bakura and Ryou shuffling uneasily, quite ready to get along, but he paid them no mind.

"Because... Because you are necessary. You have knowledge that I don't!" Akefia spat, defending his hurt ego as he curled about the reigns, anger clear on his face at being called out. He did not appreciate the bratty boy behaving this way.

"Why not make friends?" Marik offered, causing Akefia to start slightly. "I've never had friends," he continued, "but from the books I have read, friends go through trials and tribulations, helping one another along, and otherwise helping each other through disasters, misdeeds, and adventures, as we just did."

Marik paused to suck in a breath.

"So I think by definition, we're all friends." With a self important nod, Marik patted himself mentally on the back, and held his hands up to Akefia. The thief stared at it for a moment, before reaching down and grasping it. Marik smiled warmly, before he was roughly jerked up, and found himself laying sprawled out across the horse's rear, Akefia in front of him, bellowing hardily.

"You're an idiot," the thief said simply, not even bothering to turn around and face the boy. Instead, he clicked the reigns, and set Aswad off, and, in the domino effect, Bakura and Ryou's horses soon followed. Marik scrambled up right, and gripped Akefia's hips, glaring angrily at the man's back.

"But," Akefia started again, "I've never had much to say about friends either, so you could be right." With a shrug of his broad shoulders, Akefia snapped the reigns once more, and Aswad started at a healthy trot, eating up the desert ground at an good speed. "So I suppose we are. Friends, I mean."

Marik grinned slightly, and closed his eyes, watching the last of the sun dribbling away, and feeding the nocturnal creatures with the energy to rise. Looking back over his shoulder, he saw in the dusty light, the two forms of his other apparent friends.

"Yes, friends," Marik agreed, tightening his grip on Akefia's waist, and pressing his face into the thief's back. He knew tomorrow they'd all be grumpy again, and Akefia would be herding them all to obtain Marik's treasures after they stopped off to the thief's hide-out, and all would be business again.

But, just for tonight, they could be true friends, basking in the after glow of a marvelous victory.

-(-o-)-

**Reviews, as usual, they are loved, and adored, and my Review button is a dirty whore that is eying your cursor... :l So go love on it.**

**And... I suck something awful at updating this story... :T Sorry...**

**See ya~**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Flame Talk<strong>**

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><p>Marik sat up, pulling himself from beneath the blankets that had been laid atop his sleeping body. They'd stopped to rest, since Ryou had been falling asleep at the saddle, and now they all occupied a small circle surrounding a crackling fire, swaddled up with blankets to keep out the pervading, cold air of the nighttime desert.<p>

The blonde was especially effected by the cool, due to his revealing clothes that he had donned once more. He let out a sigh of relief, though, at the realization that when they went back to the tomb, he would be able to gather some new clothes.

Rubbing at his tired eyes, Marik watched the flames pop and snap, flaming fingers stretching high into the air, licking at the sky and teasing the stars into possibly swooping down to join them in their dance. Standing up slowly, Marik remembered back when Isis had taught him how to dance, and how his mother and father had joined in, laughing and pulling their tunics up about their knees as they swayed and danced, fingers interlocked in such a way that resembled how close they had all been...

Biting at his lip, Marik peered sideways, and saw Akefia thrashing in his sleep. Frowning, the blonde scuttled closer, knees sifting through the sand as his fingers left small trails behind him, slowly drawing him closer and closer tot he fitful man.

-(-o-)-

Akefia fell back to the bed, back making a solid thumping noise as his legs were immediately spread wide, and a malicious grin over took his gaze. Another kiss was forced upon his lips, and he arched his neck, biting at the other person's lip.

When he'd first awoken in this dream world once more, with the other Marik sitting on the bed, legs crossed seductively with a coy smile in place, Akefia had decided that he would certainly not sleep with, or engage in any activity, with the dream-Marik.

All his resolve, however, had quickly crumbled in a millisecond when that slender, voluptuous body was pressed sensually against his own, and kiss after kiss was delivered, the pleasure mounting. This wasn't the real Marik, right? What harm could it do?

And now, here he was, sprawled out on the bed, excitement clear as the dream-Marik rubbed against it, hips moving in solid, fluid moments and Akefia's skin was attacked with licks, kisses, and bites that had the thief moaning from the touch.

"Do you want me?" the smaller boy whispered, tongue sliding out to stroke Akefia's lips, dipping in between them, before Akefia brought his own out, reaching his large hands up to grasp the blonde locks of hair and tug the dream-boy down into another rough, hot kiss.

"I want you," Akefia snarled in return, pushing the dream boy up and backwards, burying the blonde beneath his mass. He felt a thrill run for him, before snapping his eyes open-

Just to stare, confused, down at the real Marik.

The boy was now his regular self, sprawled out in the sand as the flames crackling behind them all high-lighted the dusty blonde hair that camouflaged its self well with the sand now gathering within the strands.

"Touzouku?" Marik grumbled, nasally voice breaking through the last vestiges of the fog hanging about Akefia's mind. Grumbling, the thief rose up off of Marik, and allowed the boy to rise up into a sitting position, and shake out his hair.

"Mind telling me why you suddenly jumped up and pinned me?" Marik queried, eyes narrowing thoughtfully as he regarded Akefia. The thief waved him off, and stood up, moving to hunker down next to the fire.

Now that he was fully awake, he was actually quite pleased that he hadn't succumbed just yet. After all, he didn't know what was going on with that dream-Marik, but this was the second time he'd seen him, and the first time there had been the mentioning of a 'master' of some types. That set Akefia on edge, and helped him focus on things he'd forgotten when his mind had been clouded by lust.

"Tomorrow," Marik continued on undeterred, sidling up next to Akefia, "we'll reach your hide-out and head back to my tomb, yes?" The thief nodded slowly, and Marik bobbed his head, hands lifting up to show the palms to the flames, enjoying the heat that rolled off in waves, warming his body.

"We should get there in one day," Akefia reported, voice rough as he spoke, "since we'll be heading out rather early." Marik nodded once more, and tucked his knees into his chest, head cocking to the side.

"Why're you a thief?" Marik asked plainly, clearly having no reserves, and no idea how rude questions could be. Akefia merely sneered in reply, before shifting a bit more.

"Personal reasons," he finally replied with a shrug of his broad shoulders, staring hard at the flames, as if willing them to leap high up and crash across Marik's skin, delivering burns unto the boy.

"Fine then," Marik said simply, "fair enough I suppose." With that, they lapsed into eerie silence, that was only punctuated by an occasional snore from the sleeping, white haired brothers, or the snapping of the flame.

"What types of treasures does your tomb hold?" Akefia questioned finally, turning his steely gaze to Marik. As much as he hated it, this quiet was unnerving him, due to the dream. He was still quite 'in the mood', and Marik was looking more and more appealing as he sat there, unknowingly glistening in the shimmer of the flames.

Swiping his tongue over his lips, Akefia quickly looked away. This was not the dream-Marik, and he never would be. This was the annoying, irritating boy that gave Akefia a scar, and otherwise was annoying as could be humanly possible. He could NOT be feeling lust for such a small, ill-mannered, ignorant, and all together idiotic boy.

"My tomb," Marik said slowly, "holds many types of things. Manuscripts, ancient artifacts, and certain family heirlooms." Sighing, the boy rubbed softly at his arms, and gave a minimal shrug. "We were entrusted to some of the Pharaoh's darker treasures.

"At one time," the blonde continued, "we had possession of the Millennium Items."

Akefia's back went rigid, and his eyes lost focus for a moment, as his mind was plagued by the screams of the deceased, and the shock of seeing body after body beaten down and dragged away, the sand so sticky with blood that Akefia, once he had gotten away, had had to rip off a layer of his own skin to remove it, and had to treat Ryou and Bakura with the same ferocity.

Sighing and shaking his head, Akefia glared sharply at the now silent Marik.

"That's impossible," he barked, causing Marik to stare angrily at him, clearly not enjoying being called a liar. "That's impossible," the thief went on, "because the Millennium Items were a failure of a creation. Years back, several men tried to make them, and failed."

Marik's frown creased his face, and he rose up to his knees, peering down at Akefia's antsy form. "What... What are you talking about?" Marik demanded, eyes narrowing dangerously as he stared at Akefia. "That's impossible! The Millennium Items are thousands of years old - from when the Pharaoh reigned strong and true." Shaking his head in a quick, jagged motion, Marik clamped his eyes shut.

"I know what I'm talking about!" Akefia snapped, rising up angrily on all fours, lust immediately fleeing his mind as he bucked up to Marik, nose practically shoved into the smart-ass blonde's face, causing Marik to splutter slightly, before returning the glare ten-fold.

"And I'm telling you _I_ know what I'm talking about. I know full and well enough about the Millennium Items! What do you know, huh?" Marik demanded, prodding Akefia's chest roughly. The thief snapped lightly at Marik's finger, sending more of a warning then a threat.

"Look, you little brat, I'm telling you! These men babbled about it non-stop!" Akefia froze, before pausing and resting back on his haunches, staring mutinously at Marik. "Look, I don't even care anymore!" the gray haired man spat. "It's not important, irregardless. I don't need the Items. I need the gold and jewels that you have."

"That can be arranged," Marik replied coolly, settling down as well with his legs crossed about one another, knees bent as he stared deep into the fire. "And since you let this drop, I suppose I won't ask about these babbling men - not that you'd tell me anyways..."

Akefia smirked, and reached out a hesitant hand, before pretending that Marik was just like Ryou or Bakura, and mussed up the blonde's hair, vicious grin in place. "Damn straight," he sneered. "You catch on fast, don't you, tiger?" After a few complaints from Marik, and a few quick slaps, the thief finally released his fingers from the blonde hair, only pausing momentarily to let the pads of them brush softly against the strands.

Marik paid him no heed, and was merely staring at the fire again.

"How in the hell did you manage to stay alive on your own for however long you were in that tomb?" Akefia demanded, eyes narrowing critically as he stared at Marik, eyebrow arching up and over his forehead, crinkles popping into place.

"We had ridiculous amounts of food stored up," Marik stated. "And... We knew the... The sickness," Marik seemed to choke on the word, "was coming. So they locked me up with crates and barrels of food. My stash was actually running low when you found me," the blonde finished quietly.

Akefia blinked slowly, before grunting. "Well, then good luck to you, all the same," the thief tacked on, pivoting sideways to glare into the flames.

"Why are we heading back to your place?" Marik questioned, keeping the conversation ball rolling back and forth. Akefia felt almost like a cat, repelling the boy's questions, and sending them back with his own. Every answer, or new question was like a smack from padded paws, sending the ball skittering and sliding back to the other cat, game ready to restart once more.

"Simple," Akefia replied, pushing his bangs from his eyes. "We need more saddle bags, and more things to carry gold on. As it is, these are our light traveling packs." He shifted his steely gaze to the sleeping horses, their silhouettes sharp in the moon's bathing light, along with the long, flickering beam the fire cast about. "They're not good for carrying lots of things. We need actual bags, and heavier, bigger saddle bags."

Marik nodded slowly, before turning back to the fire, a tired look finally crossing his eyes. Akefia could almost visibly see the ball spiraling past Marik's outstretched mental paw, just to thump lazily against Bakura.

And, sure enough, the wild haired teen rose from his seated position, and hissed angrily at the two males sitting at the fire. "Would you both kindly shut the _fuck _up?" Bakura snapped. "I'm trying to sleep, and your incessant chatter is not helping!" With that, Bakura flopped back down, drawing the blanket tighter about himself. Ryou, off to the side, stirred, but did not awaken.

"I suppose we should try to-" Marik's sentence was interrupted rather rudely by a loud, jaw-cracking yawn. Snapping his jaws shut, he massaged at his cheeks, and glared at the grinning Akefia. "Oh shove it," the blonde muttered, but it lacked any conviction, and, if anything, merely showed how amused the boy truly was.

"You suppose we should try to sleep, then?" Akefia finished, peering up at the sky. His mind felt calmer somehow, more at ease. He'd let more secrets slip then he'd ever wanted to, but he'd also learned things about Marik. Things like the word sickness certainly ticked him off.

"Definitely," Marik mumbled, hands curling into fists as he arched his back, fingers unfurling themselves to go belly side up to the moon, another loud yawn slipping between his row of teeth, tongue wagging in the air, slippery with spit.

Akefia rose from his position, and stretched as well, standing tall and strong about the fire. Peering down into the flames, he shuddered from his memories, and shifted his feet slightly. They were calloused by now, rough, with the ability, almost, to walk across a bed of nails and feel no pain. That had come at a price, of course, but it wasn't a price he really wanted to think about.

The only satisfaction he had was that the Millennium Items had failed. No matter what Marik said, Akefia could remember clearly the shouts of about the Items, and how they would bring ultimate power. There had also been other things within there, but Akefia's memory would not strain itself that hard. Apparently, remembering that much, as hard as it was, was enough. He couldn't even remember names, after all, and only vague impressions of certain features about the men who had done the deed.

Shaking his head, he was surprised to feel a sharp tug on his tunic, in effect leading him to look down, spying Marik. The boy was sitting there, head cocked slightly to the side as he nibbled on the inside of his cheek, tongue prodding at it occasionally, causing it to momentarily swell.

"Yes?" Akefia questioned, eyebrow rising once more. He wondered if perhaps it would get stuck that way, seeing how much he seemed to do it with the blonde child around him.

"May I sleep with you?" Marik questioned, clearly unhappy about asking this. Akefia himself couldn't say he was thrilled, for instantly he was plagued with thoughts of the dream-Marik, and what would happen should this real Marik ever get even an inkling of an idea of what was going on...

"Why?" Akefia grumbled, watching as Marik retracted his hand, and the blonde stood. He may have been shorter then Akefia, but he certainly never held himself as such, and stared up at the thief as if they were on equal terms.

"It's cold," the boy said plainly. "I'm not used to being out in such conditions. On top of that, even with that blanket, I'm not conserving much body heat. Also..." Here the blonde paused, and glared at the ground, and Akefia saw some internal struggle flicker over the boy's face. "My sister, brother, mother and father used to all sleep together. We all had separate beds, but we'd push them together and lay about, enjoying each others company."

Akefia merely stayed silent. "It's been years since you've done that though," the thief stated bluntly. "You can't tell me it's of habit."

"No," Marik replied hastily, flustered, but doing well as to hide it. "No, I certainly do not have a habit of it, as you say. But..." Marik sighed. "It's been a while, and I figured it might, in the least, be a nice change of pace. To actually have something warm there for once..." His eyes hardened, and he looked away. "But of course, it is your call. I'm not so desperate as to climb into your covers at night."

The thief merely snorted, and stalked over to his blankets, knowing full and well that Marik was glaring daggers into his back side as he walked away. Snorting, Akefia dropped to his knees, and grabbed Marik's nearby blanket, causing the boy to cry out with protest as Akefia made a pallet of Marik's, and settled down atop the cloth, pulling his own comforter up and about him.

"Aren't you joining me?" Akefia grumbled, one eye cracking open lazily as he stared up at the confused blonde. He didn't feel the need to explain himself, though, and rolled over, not caring how Marik was feeling, or what option he chose. The blonde had asked, and Akefia had delivered, though he could only hope that Marik wouldn't ever entertain the notion that Akefia would just hand the boy whatever he so pleased.

However, as Marik crawled over, and settled down beside Akefia, backs pressed against one another, Akefia felt a calm pulling over him once more. He didn't feel the need to touch himself, and he was almost positive that the dream-Marik would not be visiting him for the rest of this night.

"It feels weird sleeping with clothes on," Marik mumbled, already half way asleep.

Akefia could do nothing but laugh, before snores punctuated the air behind him.


	2. Bakura's Little Problem

****Chapter 1: Chapter 1: Little Problem****

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><p><strong>For Jezziebell912<strong>

**IF YOU DON'T WANNA READ SMUT, I'M PUTTING WHERE IT BEGINS AND WHEN IT ENDS. LISTEN TO THE BOLD**

-(-o-)-

Marik smirked down at the woman before him, a bottle balanced carefully in his tanned hand. The woman in front of him was probably in her mid-forties, a small smile on her ever-so-slightly wrinkled face. She had her soft brown hair free around her shoulders, streaks of grey appearing every once in a while through them. Her dress was a nice blue color, and even had white frills at the front-most-part of it, obscuring the cleavage that younger people chose to flaunt.

And that was what was so perfect about her. She was older, and not to worried about her figure. Marik preferred these women much more. He knew for a fact that she wouldn't try to come onto him, and he could focus on selling her what he'd really come here for.

"So, as I was saying," Marik began, voice deep and persuasive as he kept an innocent enough look on his face. He made sure to make his lavender eyes seem just a bit bigger then they would normally be, making him seem even more innocent. His mouth curled up at the corners, showing that he was an adult, but showing just enough to teeth to let the woman know he retained the goofiness of a child.

"This perfume here would be a lovely gift for any young lady. You said your grand-daughter would like perfume for her birthday, right?" Marik questioned, his voice light and lilting as he threw in yet another falsified lie.

"Yes, sir, that she did," the woman replied, her smile slightly faltering. "But. . . You said something about this perfume being special. . . Will it actually do anything?" Marik resisted the urge to grin, and kept the maniacal fire in his eyes at bay.

"Oh yes, ma'am, it does something special all right." With a deft, slim finger, Marik tugged at the paper wrapped around the perfume bottle. Unraveling it, he pressed it into the woman's hand, waiting for her verdict.

"It has the ability to attract suitors?" The woman asked dubiously, though Marik could see the flicker of interest sparking within her eyes. Ah, this sale would go through without a hitch! It was absolutely perfect and-

"What rubbish," an obnoxious voice interrupted them, causing both persons to turn and face the new entity within the room. A villainous grin was etched across his pale features as he stalked forward, long white hair bumping against his back. He wore a simple blue waistcoat atop a white long-sleeved shirt, which was rolled up and pinned at his elbows. His trousers were a simple black coloring, and the only thing that distinguished them was the small golden trinket hanging from his belt-loops.

"Excuse me?" Marik growled, dropping all pretenses as he crossed his arms over his chest, glaring angrily over-top the woman's head to the new, pale stranger.

"Oh, Bakura, you're here," the woman said, releasing the paper in favor of hurrying to the white-haired man. "I'm glad to see you here. The clock I need you to fix is just over there on that wall." Once the woman had directed Bakura to his position, she focused once more on Marik.

"As I was saying, that perfume will attract suitors for your daughter, so-_Just what are you laughing at!_" Marik hissed, narrowing his eyes as his glare turned on the laughing albino in the corner. Bakura merely smirked, and twirled the wrench clasped in his hand.

"I'm merely laughing at the fact that you're trying to sell nice little Ms. Linda here such bogus material," Bakura said, voice condescending as he stepped away from the clock, moving forwards to where he could glare up into Marik's eyes.

"Tch. Shut your trap, shorty, and go back to fiddling with your wires. I'm selling genuine perfumes here. They do whatever I say they do," Marik sniffed, his pride taking a blow from this Bakura's constant meddling. And it was the truth! His perfumes and scents really did do as he claimed. It took plenty of science and research, but he, Marik Ishtar, was not a liar.

Bakura lip curled back in a snarl, but Ms. Linda interrupted them, her tanned hands flying up and pushing them apart.

"Boys, boys, that enough. Both of you go outside and sort out your differences! When you're done, then you can come in and do your jobs!" The woman then put her hands on the smalls of their backs, and ushered them out the back door.

Bakura flopped down on the step, an irritable sigh escaping from his lips as Marik joined him. They both sat, completely still, neither looking at the other. Bakura seemed to be focused on the different gizmos whirring about in the yard, whereas Marik was looking at a particular flower, wondering vaguely if it had a useful scent.

"I don't hear talking!" Ms. Linda's voice called from within the house. Marik groaned and ruffled a hand through his blonde hair. Shifting his gaze to Bakura, he narrowed his khol lined lavender eyes, clearly prompting the other to speak.

"Your perfumes really work, then?" Bakura snarled, lips curling into a smirk, showing he clearly didn't believe his companion. Violet eyes rolled within seas of white, before resting on the annoying albino sitting next to him.

"Is it so hard to believe?" Marik questioned, arms crossing over his shirt. "Honestly. That's like me asking if you really can fix that clock in there!"

"I can fix the bloody clock," Bakura snarled. Marik realized he'd managed to damage the albino's ego. Good. "I can make a clock, too. And dolls that work for me, or for other people, depending on how I program them. So don't you worry your pretty little head over me."

"Glad that you think I'm pretty," Marik smirked, and Bakura silently fumed. "How about this, then? You and I be partners."

"Excuse me?" Bakura growled, crimson eyes showing mistrust as he stared at Marik. The blonde ignored this though, and just began fiddling with his hair, hoping to straighten it out.

"Well, think about it. I give them perfumes and chit-chat with them, keeping them company, whilst you go about fixing things," Marik smirked, "we'd be the perfect duo, you know?"

Bakura paused, clearly mulling it over. "That's certainly an interesting proposition, boy. Now, what's your name?"

"Marik. Marik Ishtar. And your surname, Bakura?"

"Touzouku," the albino confided, lifting a hand to clasp the tanned one being offered to him.

"You know, I'm sure you could pocket a few things around the house as well," Marik muttered in a more hushed voice, grin stretching his face. Bakura grinned as well, and nodded slightly, thinking of all the things he'd seen in Ms. Linda's house alone.

"Yes, yes. These rich old widows don't need much anyhow, now do they?" Bakura simpered, eyes glimmering with the thought of all the riches he could stuff in unseen places. Marik stood up, hands stuffing into his pockets as he grinned at his newly found partner.

"Well then, Bakura, shall we go test out our ideas?"

"Lead the way, partner."

-(-o-)-

For the three years that followed that, Marik and Bakura did as they planned, going from house to house and pilfering things whilst fixing and giving what they'd been paid to do. It was a glorious partnership that left nothing for them to want. Until the third year, on a certain blonde's birthday.

By this point, they were even living together. Some people were uneasy about their relationship-after all, gays were highly frowned upon. They put these rumors to rest, however, by dating different women. Bakura was fine with it, until Marik actually got serious with a girl.

Tea Gardner. A sweet girl, if not a bit whiny. She had a nice figure, Bakura had to admit, but she was constantly blabbing about friendship. Bakura didn't even get why she was always so peppy! It made no damned sense to him!

He tolerated her, however, for Marik. The blonde seemed to be at least _slightly_ happy, though Bakura knew for a fact he didn't love her. Or, at least, he'd never said it, anyhow. For the whole year they'd been dating, even though Tea wanted him too, he'd never said those words.

Until his birthday.

Bakura sat idly on the couch, picking at one of the springs. Marik was sitting on the floor, his arm looped around Tea's waist as they sat their cuddling. Bakura glared moodily at the two, especially at Marik's arm. He was pissed that Marik kept this little bitch around. Their girlfriends were supposed to be minor flings to keep rumors down, not to sit and _cuddle_ with.

And anyways, Bakura knew that as soon as Tea left, Marik would walk over to the couch and collapse on top of Bakura, wailing and complaining about something or another just to piss Bakura off. For some reason, that made him feel triumphant. Marik never lay down in Tea's lap. Only Bakura's.

"Oh, Marik, I love you," Tea whispered into Marik's ear, brushing the blonde's hair away in feathery movement. Bakura felt like gagging at those words, and only took comfort in the fact that they would never be reciprocated.

"I love you too, Tea," Marik muttered, pressing his lips to Tea's. Bakura's jaw dropped, and his head snapped up to watch Tea's reaction. The woman seemed teary-eyed, and even wrapped her arms around Marik's neck, deepening the kiss. Bakura let out an imperceptible hiss.

"Marik. . . You should come live with me," Tea murmured as the kiss broke, smiling softly up at her boyfriend. "You wouldn't need to do this job anymore! You wouldn't have to steal or. . . Anything!"

Marik froze, which was the opposite of what Bakura did. The albino was on his feet in a minute, gripping the back of Tea's dress quite rudely as he jerked her up. Tea let out a cry of alarm, whereas Marik just watched, clearly amused.

Bakura tossed Tea away, making sure she landed face first into the carpet. Tea struggled to her feet, her thick dress blocking her way.

"Sennen!" Bakura barked, referring to their robotic maid (Marik had named her). The golden colored maid rattled into the living room. She looked human for the most part, except for her color and the fact that her face lacked any emotion. Her arms were made of ball joints, and the same for her legs.

Sennen stood there, still and immaculate, awaiting orders from one of her two masters. Tea seemed to sense what was happening, and attempted to gain her footing faster, crawling for the door at the same time. Desperately, she looked to Marik, but he just stood there, arms crossed with a cruel grin on his face.

Sapphire eyes widened, and Tea's genuine hurt showed clear in her eyes. She'd thought she had been a good girlfriend, and even a possible fiance. But she'd been wrong, and it was painful just sitting here, seeing the one she'd loved staring at her like that.

"Dispose of the trash," Bakura growled finally, a long pale finger shooting out in Tea's direction. Sennen moved with inhuman speed, grabbing Tea and launching her from the house. Bakura watched with a satisfied smirk as the girl landed in a flap of skirts into the cold December air.

Turning around, he was surprised to see Marik standing directly behind him. The blonde was watching him, showing nothing on his face. His mouth opened, and Bakura just glared up at him, wondering what his friend was thinking.

"Sennen, close the door then return to the kitchen," Marik commanded, not even taking his eyes from Bakura's face. The albino, however, was getting pretty annoyed with Marik. Right now, he felt rage bubbling in the pit of his stomach, and he crossed his arms across his chest, clearly unafraid to show his aggravation.

Marik just chuckled softly, and let his eyes roam to Sennen's disappearing figure.

"Now just what the bloody hell do you wan-" Bakura started yelling, but he was interrupted as he felt Marik's lips crushing his own. With a surprised yelp, Bakura stumbled backwards, pressing up against the wall. He could feel Marik's tongue tracing the outside of his mouth, but Bakura was to confused to respond.

Marik pulled a way, a satisfied smirk on his face. One hand was propped up against the wall, mere inches away from Bakura's hair. The other was pressed against the wall next to Bakura's hip, effectively pinning the albino.

"Come now, Bakura," Marik laughed, "that's what you wanted, wasn't it? Do you think I'm stupid? You've liked me for a while now." Marik leaned forward, trailing kisses up Bakura's neck, pausing once he reached the albino's jawline.

"I. . . Damn you, Ishtar," Bakura snarled, reaching a hand up and fisting it in Marik's blonde hair. A dark laugh broke from the tanned boy's lips, tickling Bakura's skin in such an enticing way.

"I think the proper phrasing would be 'fuck me, Ishtar'," Marik chuckled, trailing his tongue from Bakura's chin and back up to his mouth. Kissing him once more, Marik stepped back, a cocky grin on his face.

Bakura scowled and crossed his arms. "Quite full of yourself, eh? And since when did you turn gay? Plus, even if I did like you. . . They'd stone us to death!" The albino glared up into his friend's eyes, and saw that some of the mirth had indeed vanished from their purple depths.

"You don't think I never thought about that?" Marik growled. "I've been gay for a long time, Bakura. Why do you think I didn't take those girls seriously? And nobody ever has to know, partner." Marik leaned in against, slipping a hand up Bakura's shirt and massaging the albino's stomach softly, letting his fingers trail over each and every inch of them.

Shuddering slightly, Bakura frowned. "But I don't want to see you with other girls if you're mine." A snarl burst through Bakura's lips, and he launched forward, savagely claiming Marik's lips. He felt the blonde grinning against his lips, and dropped back down.

"You have to stand on tip-toe to kiss me," Marik laughed, but Bakura just glared up at him, whacking him in the back of the head. Marik mock-pouted, but nodded. "I know, I know. Just don't act like a faggot, okay?"

"Don't. . . What?-!" Bakura exploded, glare intensifying.

"That means no hitting pretty ladies when they talk to me. Also, no evacuating women from our home anymore. I'm sure Ms. Tea will be spreading that little tale to all of her friends when they have tea this weekend."

Bakura slammed his hand over Marik's mouth. "Don't say her name again."

Marik rolled his eyes, but leaned forward, kissing Bakura once more. Pulling the albino away from the wall, Marik pressed their bodies flush against one another. With a sharp gasp, Bakura ground against him, and Marik grinned, pushing Bakura back towards the closest bedroom-Bakura's.

Pushing the albino onto the bed, Mark clambered atop him, pausing only to laugh as he saw the different parts of Bakura's latest experiments littering the ground. Arms, legs, bolts and bottles of oil were everywhere, mixed in every once in a while with some of Bakura's ripped, burnt, and stained clothing.

"You're a pig," Marik mumbled, kissing the albino beneath him. Bakura just grunted. He wasn't ashamed of his room. He was actually glad it wasn't clean and orderly like Marik's, with different smells and bottles laying about on neat little vanities. He didn't trust Sennen in here; period. If anything were out of order or place, Bakura would never find it again, and would have to scrap whole ideas.

So instead, he focused on bucking up, brushing against Marik's manhood. Marik let out an appreciative moan, and Bakura let his hands wander down, unbuttoning Marik's britches. The blonde felt the motion, and stood up, removing his trousers. He tossed them to the floor, his undergarments following.

Bakura stared, and gulped as he saw that Marik happened to be a little. . . _Big_. Blushing slightly, Bakura suddenly felt embarrassed, and didn't want to take off his clothes. Marik was looking at him expectantly, however, and Bakura felt his face heating up even more.

He hoped that the dim lighting hid it well enough. "Let's not engage in that just yet, Marik."

**SMUT STARTS HERE**

"You're the one who started unbuttoning my pants!" Marik complained, crawling back onto the bed. He was silenced, however, as Bakura ducked his head between Marik's legs, taking the boy's member into his mouth.

Letting out a strangled groan, Marik fisted his hand in Bakura's hair.

"I'm just saying let's not have sex just yet," Bakura said, pulling up to stare at Marik, a lustful look in his eyes. "I'll take care of you tonight." Marik just nodded slowly, and allowed Bakura to go back to his job, running his tongue up and down Marik's cock.

"Mm. . . Kura. . . Ahh," Marik moaned, bucking into Bakura's mouth. The albino gagged slightly, and placed his hands on Marik's hips, holding the exited boy in place. Marik mumbled some type of apology, but Bakura ignored it and went back to sucking.

Pulling away, Bakura wrapped a hand around Marik's cock. He felt the blonde squirm beneath him.

"What're you doing?" Marik panted, eyes lidded as he stared down at Bakura.

"I don't want you to cum in my mouth," Bakura explained, stroking Marik's member. The blonde didn't seem to mind anymore, however, and lay back, bucking into Bakura's hand.

"Go faster," Marik commanded, and Bakura obliged, reaching down to offer a few licks. Finally, though, Marik came, his seed covering Bakura's hand. With a clucking noise, Bakura retracted his hand, and grabbed a nearby cloth. It was one of the clean ones, and he thanked God for that. Marik took it from him when he was done, and cleaned himself up.

**SMUT ENDS HERE**

"Don't you want me to take care of you?" Marik asked, tilting his head and pointing at Bakura's own crotch. The albino stuttered for a moment, before savagely shaking his head. Instead, he leaned forward and kissed Marik softly.

"No, I'm quite fine. You're mine now, and we have all the time in the world," Bakura muttered, and Marik believed him. Kissing him back, they both flopped down on their backs. Marik snuggled up to Bakura, clearly exhausted.

Bakura stayed awake, however, staring up at the ceiling with a sort of desperation. Surely if Marik saw him. . . He'd laugh!

Bakura had to find something to make him bigger.

-(-o-)-

**Oh my God. . . I know I said I'd never write smut but. . . T . T Please forgive me? It's not detailed and penetrative, at least?**

**I haven't edited this outside of spelling errors. TELL ME if I messed anything up, and I'll go back and check on it! (This and chapter 2 were originally going to be together but. . . This was too long!)**

**So yes, Jezziebell912 requested an Mpreg. So, if those offend you, don't read this story!**

**And thank LadySunami big time, cuz she came up with the plot, I'm just writin' it!**

**One final thing: Jezziebell912 said this would go better i~f everybody votes! That's right. Should they have a daughter or a son? I know what I'm voting for, but I won't say until next chapter, so as to not influence people!**

**(Remember how I said I'd be doing requests one at at a time. ..? I LIED!)**

**PLEASE review!**

**See ya!**

**(P.S. This is a Steam-punk universe. If anybody's confused on anything. . .)**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 2: Chapter 2: The Tonic<strong>**

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><p>Bakura sat up, stretching out and letting out a jaw-cracking yawn. Smacking his lips, he turned to the side and saw a surprise; a naked Marik in his bed. Memories from last night came flooding in, and Bakura couldn't help but give an impressive grin as he swooped down and kissed the sleeping boy.<p>

Marik's eyes fluttered open, and regarded Bakura with clear amusement. The albino just stood up from the bed, though, and picked up Marik's britches from the floor. Smirking, he tossed them to the blonde, and watched as the boy slid them on over his legs.

As Bakura watched him get dressed, it brought back all the insecurities from last night, as well. Flinching, Bakura gritted his teeth and looked away, only turning back around when a tanned hand found itself place upon his shoulder.

"Are you all right?" Marik questioned, concern evident on his features. It was immediately squashed, however, as his eyes narrowed in suspicion, and his voice turned slightly harsh. "Are you having regrets over what you did?"

"If I was having regrets," Bakura grunted, shaking off Marik's hand, "I wouldn't still be here, kissing you in the morning, now would I?" The blonde just shrugged his shoulders, and moved past Bakura and into the kitchen.

"Sennen," Marik barked, "proceed on making breakfast." Bakura could hear the rugged, clanking noises as their robot-servant sprang to life, clattering around the kitchen and making God-knows what. Marik hadn't specified, so that meant Sennen would make something random.

Sighing, the albino shut his bedroom door, and began dressing himself. He chose simple clothes; a blue vest over a black undershirt, and black britches with blue pin-stripes. Tugging on his shoes as well, Bakura made his way into the kitchen, where Marik was sitting at the table, messing around with a wind-up toy that Bakura had made. They were easy to make; a dime a dozen, really, but old women loved to give them to daughters and grand-daughters.

"Sennen's making pancakes," Marik informed Bakura, winding up the doll and sending it pirouetting down the table. Bakura grunted and sat across from his new boyfriend. That thought was odd, and Bakura shoved it away. Marik was certainly not a boyfriend, though he wasn't really a friend... Partner, maybe?

"Don't play with toys at the table," Bakura reprimanded, lifting up the toy and removing it from the wooden surface. Marik made a noise of complaint, and stretched across the table, attempting to reach it. Bakura merely sneered, and held it up further.

Suddenly, Marik was kissing him, and Bakura relaxed his grip, bringing his arms in to cup Marik's cheeks, pulling them closer together. The blonde, however, grabbed the toy from Bakura's grasp, and plopped down in his seat once more.

"That's cheating!" Bakura huffed, wing-like pieces of hair shaking as he tossed his head, arms crossing over his chest. Marik just smirked and rolled his eyes, before holding up the doll again, admiring it.

"You know. . . When I was little, I always wanted a daughter," Marik said in a soft voice, causing Bakura's head to snap around on his neck, and for his crimson gaze to lock onto the blonde before him.

Marik paid him no heed, though, and instead cradled the doll in his hand. "I've always wondered if I'd be a good parent. But then, you know, I figured since I like boys it. . . Well, that that dream was gone." Sighing, Marik showed the doll to Bakura, and the albino watched as his usually snarky, crafty friend looked sad and desolate.

"You see, the reason I wanted a daughter, was because, number one, I just always wanted to be a better parent then my father," Marik's voice drawled on, only interrupted by the banging of pots and pans from within the kitchen, along with the occasional stutter from Sennen, or the creaking of her joints.

Bakura listened attentively. He knew that Marik never liked to talk about his father. The man had been a drunk, and frequently abused Marik and his sister, Isis, and their adopted brother, Odion. Eventually, Isis had ran away, and had been ran over by a train. Marik hadn't really cared all that much; after all, he'd been six when Isis left. Odion stayed by Marik and as far as Bakura knew lived down-town somewhere. He knew that Marik's father had carved symbols into Marik's back, something that was an old ritual to the first-born male of the Ishtar family. Odion had been exempt, since their father saw him as scum, and not one of the family.

Marik's mother had attempted to disband it, but she died of an illness, and then the Isthars' father had quickly gone to carving Marik's back open with a hot knife. The blonde still had nightmares, though they had slowly reclined in the years that Bakura had known Marik, when they started living together.

"Also, if I ever did have a daughter, I would know good and well that I would never have to carve anything into her skin," Marik's voice was a strained whisper now, and he fiddled with the doll some more, her dress a lush crimson, her hair creamy white, cascading down her back.

"Marik-"

"Oh look," Marik interrupted, placing the doll on the table and shifting his attention to the golden robot, now clanking out of the kitchen. A plate of pancakes were clutched in her jointed hands, and she quickly deposited them on the table, along with some syrup. With that done, Sennen moved away, collapsing in a corner, her yellow eyes dimming completely as she 'slept'.

Acting as if the previous conversation hadn't happened, Marik began hoisting pancakes onto a plate, and drenching them in syrup. Bakura sighed, and began eating as well, drumming his fingers against the table. He ate his without syrup, since he happened to not have a sweet-tooth.

Letting his mind wander, Bakura popped more small bites into his mouth, thinking. He'd heard of certain tonics that could... Make a man 'bigger'. He wondered if it would be worth a shot. Having sex with Marik... Bakura was certainly looking forward to that. And, if he had a bigger penis, he could surely please Marik more. Smirking, he imagined Marik on his back, writhing and screaming as he clawed at Bakura, begging for more and-

Coughing slightly, Bakura quickly stopped that train of thought before he made his 'excitement' noticeable. Frowning, Bakura decided that yes, he would indeed have to try to get one of those tonics. He just had to find one of the papers laying about and...

Marik stood up, walking round the table to Bakura, before leaning in and kissing the albino. Bakura blinked, and Marik brushed some of Bakura's hair away from his face, a smirk on his face.

"I have work to do today. I'll be gone, off visiting some pretty ladies. That doesn't bug you, does it?" Marik laughed knowingly, as Bakura scowled. Raising a hand up, he grabbed a chunk of Marik's hair and pulled at it savagely.

"Shame, shame, Marik. You're _mine _now. I don't think some stupid female can entice you away from my amazingness," Bakura stated in a haughty voice. Marik barked out a laugh though, quirking an eyebrow and pulling away from his partner.

"Of course not. You're already girly enough for me, anyhow," Marik teased, "with your long, silky flowing hair, and your well-pressed clothes." Shoving out his tongue, Marik walked to the door, grabbing his coat and exiting the house.

"Bitch," Bakura muttered, but as soon as the blonde was gone, he lurched up from the table, and began his search for a paper. Shuffling around in their living-room, Bakura finally extracted the newspaper, a triumphant grin stretching his face. Casting a cautious look to Sennen, even though he knew she was asleep and wouldn't tell anyways, he raised his shoulders and hunched down over-top the parchment, flipping through the pages as fast as he could, eyes scanning each page.

Finally, he reached the page that had the ad. Breathing a sigh of relief, Bakura ripped it from its place in the paper, and stuffed it in his pant's pocket. Storming over to the door, he grabbed his long black coat, and threw it on atop his clothes.

Fixing the sleeves of it, he pushed his way from his and Marik's home, and headed down the street, the numbers of the place he was looking for etched into the back of his eyeballs, floating about in his skull.

Bakura gave a cold grin, scaring a few children that crossed his path. He could care less, though. All he could think about was how his new dick would please Marik.

-(-o-)-

Pushing open the door, Bakura heard a loud series of bells go off, echoing in the distance. Grumbling at the irritating noise, he shuffled into the shop, slamming the glass door closed behind him, and heading towards what he could assume was the counter, seeing as a register was present.

"I'll be there in a minute!" A cracked voice called from further back, and Bakura growled, stuffing his hands in his pocket. Snorting with annoyance, he kicked angrily at the floor, causing dust to rise up around his shoes.

"Please don't do that," a small voice requested from the corner, and Bakura narrowed his eyes, only just now seeing a star-haired boy sitting in the corner, knees pulled up to his chest as he watched Bakura, amethyst eyes glistening with some type of emotion.

"Whatever," Bakura replied, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring moodily at nothing in particular.

"You're the one who evacuated Tea, aren't you?" The boy questioned, eyes narrowing slightly. "The one who was jealous of her and Marik?"

Bakura's back stiffened, and he turned a crimson gaze upon the small boy. "Yes, I evacuated Tea, but not because of jealousy. Merely because she's annoying little whore who needed to be disposed of."

"Take that back!" the boy yelped, rising up from his seat and starting towards Bakura. The albino shifted his position, preparing to punch the boy's pasty face. Something interrupted the two of them, though.

"Yugi! Behave!" A voice commanded from behind the counter of the shop. The star-haired boy, apparently Yugi, froze, fist hovering in the air as he glared angrily up at Bakura, eyes watering slightly. Bakura snorted, realizing how pathetic this boy was. He probably was going to chicken out at the last moment, anyhow.

"Forgive my grandson," the owner of the voice pleaded. His wrinkled face looked up to Bakura, and he smiled, revealing even more lines around his mouth. Yugi fell back, shuffling back to his corner, head hanging in shame.

"Quite all right," Bakura replied grudgingly, staring at the old man.

"I'm Solomon Muto, but I doubt you're here for me!" Solomon chuckled, picking some bottles up from a crate and setting them up on shelves. "You're here for Arthur Hawkins, aren't you?"

Bakura gave Solomon a stupid look, and the elder man just laughed, waving a hand and waddling back to the counter, peering over it and into Bakura's annoyed face. Whatever he saw made the old man even more amused, and caused Bakura to scowl.

"Arthur is the one who makes the tonics. I just re-stock the shelves. We're old friends, so he gave me a job," Solomon explained, turning his back to Bakura once more. Honestly, the albino could care less about this stupid old man's life, but he supposed he could listen, if it meant meeting this Arthur person.

"He'll be here in a minute. He's just opening up some new ingredients. You know, he can make a fertility potion?" Solomon exclaimed. "That's how good he is! Made an eighty year old woman pregnant! She'd been infertile when she was young, and was over-joyed at the fact that she could have a child before she died."

Solomon's eyes glistened with happy tears, but Bakura was unimpressed. He didn't care about some woman's problems, or some stupid tonic that made you pregnant. He was a man, and he had no need to know such things.

"Ah, hello!" a new voice greeted them, and a man stepped into the room. Bakura could only presume that he was Arthur Hawkins. The man had graying hair, and was dressed in a smart yellow suit, equipped with a red tie and a kind smile.

Bakura nodded stiffly, narrowing his eyes.

"What can I do for you today, m'boy?" Arthur questioned, eyes crinkling at the corners from his smile. He strode forward, holding out a wrinkled hand. Bakura took it, barely brushing their skin together. Bakura didn't really like contact with strangers.

"I'd. . . Um," Bakura found himself actually stuttering. He _really_ didn't want to confess this in front of these three men. It was embarrassing enough sitting silently in his head. Actually voicing it, though, was a completely different matter all together.

"If it's embarrassing," Arthur said, leaning forward, "you can whisper it in my ear."

Bakura gulped and nodded, hating his weakness. Leaning forward, he whispered his desire into the man's ear. Surprisingly, Arthur didn't laugh, just smiled and nodded, motioning for Bakura to follow him. The albino did so, sweeping past a glaring Yugi and a smiling Solomon, following the tonic-master back further into the shop.

"You know, you shouldn't be ashamed," Arthur said when they were out of ear-shot from the others. They were walking down a dimly lit hallway, with a simple door at the end of it. Bakura felt antsy, being trapped in such a small place, but said nothing.

Arthur just sighed in understanding, and kept walking until they reached the door. Opening it, he revealed the room beyond it to be a simple workshop, with bottles and tubes off to one side, neatly set up on a table. There was a cot off to the side, which Arthur told Bakura to sit on, and he complied.

Settling down on the soft material, Bakura gritted his teeth and glared angrily at the wooden walls. A portrait of Arthur and some blonde child was posted on the wall, and Bakura watched it moodily, before shifting his attention to Arthur. The old man was pulling out a bottle of some hot pink liquid.

Mouth twisting in a grimace, he watched warily as Arthur approached him. "Please remove your trousers," the old man bade, and Bakura immediately went to the defensive, glaring angrily at the man, clearly saying 'hell no'.

"Boy, I'm sixty-seven," Arthur admonished. "And I happen to be straight with kids, and a lovely granddaughter. I'm not particularly interested in you. I promise you, this is purely professional. I just need to gauge out much I should give you. Don't want to give you too little, but I also don't want to give you to much."

Bakura slowly nodded his head, before unbuttoning his pants, sliding them down his legs along with his undergarments. Arthur leaned forward, studying Bakura, and making the albino feel incredibly uncomfortable.

"You are aware that you're not a bad size, right?" Arthur questioned, craning his neck to watch Bakura. Despite himself, the whittete flushed, and looked away, remembering Marik... Yeah, Bakura _was_ small, when compared to that.

"She uh... My girlfriend, she uh... Told me how big her... Her ex was. I just want to live up to her standards," Bakura stuttered, playing the fool. Arthur believed him, and gave him a sympathetic smile, patting his pale thigh.

"Those girls... Well, if it's any consolation, you are a normal size, and a very handsome young man. Now," Arthur went on, "I need you to look at some pictures for me, so I can judge your size when you have an erection." Pulling out a few drawings, Arthur passed them to Bakura.

Staring at them, Bakura had to retain a sigh. All of them were women put in suggestive poses. Frowning, he pretended to watch them, all the while thinking of Marik in these positions. Marik with his ass raised in the air; Marik with a finger in his mouth, one hand touching his dick; Marik fingering himself and staring at Bakura with a lustful gaze...

"Good, good," Arthur interrupted, taking the pictures away and storing them in a cupboard. Turning back, he saw that Bakura's face had become slightly flushed, and he was staring down at his erect cock, panting ever-so-slightly, thinking of Marik in a number of ways.

"Calm down there, boy," Arthur laughed, causing Bakura to jump slightly, glaring angrily at the old man. "Sorry, sorry. I just don't need you humping air in front of me." Biting the inside of his cheek, Bakura resisted the urge to hit the stupid old man.

"Now, judging by your size, I'll prescribe you a cup. Just drink it, and it should be in effect by tomorrow! You can finally full-fill your pretty little lass. Well, I can only assume she's pretty, seeing as you got pretty worked up about this..." Arthur began pouring out the stated amount of tonic, turning to face Bakura, "Is that erection because of her?"

"Yes she happens to be very... Pleasing to the eye," Bakura murmured, staring down at his swollen length, thoughts of Marik still floating through his head.

"Well, make sure it's not all about looks!" Arthur reprimanded, passing the bottle to Bakura. "And there's a bathroom back there, you can go get rid of that," the man pointed at Bakura's boner, "before walking around the streets."

"Yeah," Bakura grumbled heading towards the bathroom.

"Just pay Solomon on your way out!

-(-o-)-

**This ending is awkward, but whatever.**

**Thank LadySunami, again, for this chapter, for she gives me plots/ideas/other stuff. =) And this chapter was originally going to be combined with the next, but it's already kinda long.**

**NEXT CHAPTER WILL HAVE SMUT! I'll put bold though, and make sure nothing plot-relevant happens whilst it happens.**

**Oh, this chapter... The awkwardness whilst writing this... Talking about Bakura's penis is not fun... (**everytime I typed dick, I kept thinking of whales, and then I thought of Bakura as whale, or Bakura with a whale for a penis and... I don't even know. T.T**) And several times I tried to write Sennen, and kept writing Semen... Why is my mind in the gutter today?-!**

**On a side note, reading older stories... Like from the time of the Grimm Brothers... Sometimes... There's sentences like '**_The pussy ate the cock_**' or **'_Oh no! My pussy is wet!_**' Oh my God... It makes me realize how completely immature I am... xD**

**Eh,that's it.**

**Seeya, and please review!**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Let's Dance<strong>**

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><p><strong>THE BOLD IS YOUR CHESHIRE. LISTEN TO ITS ADVICE<strong>

Marik didn't necessarily _enjoy_ lying to Bakura, but certain things the albino just didn't need to know. Like the fact that Marik wasn't really going to 'work'. He was, instead, taking things to his brother, Odion.

Bakura didn't approve of the fact that Marik gave things to his brother for free, so Odion could turn around and sell them, keeping all the profit made. Marik, however, couldn't care less. From his point of view, he and Bakura made enough on their own, and it didn't bother Marik to make a few things for Odion.

So, standing before Odion's house, Marik shifted his satchel and heard the clinking of bottles as he knocked on his step-brother's door. Odion opened the door, and bowed to Marik, allowing the blonde to enter his home.

Odion was a tall black man, yellow eyes rimmed in kohl. His dark hair was tied back into a ponytail at the back of his otherwise bald skull. He dressed in simple dark clothes, more specifically purple. He started wearing the color when he was younger, after Marik had demanded that Odion be his slave and do his orders. The man had done it jokingly, and just to appease Marik's lust for control. Looking back now, it always silently amused Odion that he still acted like this, even though those days were long gone.

"Hello, Marik," Odion greeted, rising from his bow to follow the smaller man into the living-room. Marik ran his lavender eyes over the house, propping a hand on his hip and making a tsk-ing noise as he slowly walked to the couch.

"Really, Odion!" Marik admonished. "Have a little bit more machinery in this house! If Bakura ever came to visit, he'd be offended that you had none of his mechanisms lingering about your home. He's become slightly famous, you know." Reaching forward, Marik grasped Odion's unfinished tea and began drinking from it without Odion's permission.

The bald man wanted to laugh at his brother's brash acts, but was kept from doing so at the mention of Bakura. Odion truly hated the albino, and could only think of all the bad things that the pale man would bring about for his brother.

With a scowl adorning his features, Odion moved over and sat next to the younger Egyptian, watching Marik drink the tea. Lowering it from his lips, Marik smiled up at Odion, looking like his younger self, and stirring the warmth in Odion's darkened heart.

"Odion, you should have better tea," Marik reprimanded as he smiled up at his brother. "I don't like this pansy stuff that you drink. It needs more sugar! Also, it's quite warm. You know I like cold things."

Odion resisted the urge to roll his eyes, and instead took the cup from Marik's hands. "Forgive me, master," Odion replied, standing up and carrying the cup into his kitchen. Looking around, he couldn't help but wonder what exclamations Marik would make upon entering the old-fashioned kitchen. There were no mechanical items about, unless you wanted to count the oven. Odion, for some reason, just didn't like machines. Perhaps that was another reason, among many, that he and Bakura were not buddy-buddy. After all, the pale man's life practically revolved around those stupid machines that he fiddled with, day in and day out.

Sighing, Odion returned to the living room, and saw that Marik was fiddling with a doll. Odion kept it around, because he'd found it one day, reminding him of their deceased sister, Isis. Closing his eyes, he hoped Isis was looking down on them, happy that her brothers were doing okay now in their lives. Marik probably didn't see the connection, however, and was instead playing with the doll's hair, forming small braids with his nimble fingers.

"What're you doing?" Odion questioned, moving to sit on one of the unoccupied cushions. Marik made a small humming noise, before lifting his gaze to Odion's, meeting the amber gaze with a sleepy smile.

"Oh, nothing. The tonics I brought you are in the bag," Marik muttered, lifting the doll up and smoothing back some stray strands from her face, inky black hair falling behind its back.

Odion watched his brother for a moment, before reaching over to the satchel and pulling out its contents. It was really just a random collection of different bottles, all doing simple things. Some of them could cure a cold, some of them could help get rid of insomnia, and some made it impossible for nightmares to pervade a person's dreams. For a whole week, the person would have nothing but true bliss. It was usually bought as a pairing for the insomnia cure.

"Thank-you, Marik," Odion said simply, scooping the bottles up and placing them on a shelf off to the side. His living room was much the same way as his kitchen; virtually free of anything mechanical. He preferred old-fashioned wooden shelves, to the current metals ones that had rotating plat-forms. His couch was normal for the times they were living in, though it lacked the colors and patterns now coming into popularity. It was a simple, bruised purple, and he liked it that way.

Around the room were various trinkets from Egypt. Marik hadn't been alive when they'd left Egypt; it had just been Odion and Isis. Isis had been but two, and Odion ten. He remember that they had moved due to his mother's health. Before then, they'd been living in a tomb. Their father claimed that it was imperative that they live there, for tradition, but when their mother had finally gotten too sick, even he had to admit it was time to move.

After reaching England, their mother took a turn for the better, health improving. She soon had Marik Ishtar; the first true son for the current generation of Ishtars. When Marik turned ten, their mother died of an ailment that had no cure.

Their father had then taken a knife into his hand and carved an ancient scripture into his son's back. Mr. Ishtar had a matching one, due to it being family tradition. Odion had felt bad for seeing his brother in such a state, and had even carved his own face, just so they could be bloodied, scarred messes together.

"You're thinking about our past," Marik's voice broke through Odion's concentration, and his gaze snapped to his younger brother. He watched the boy run lavender eyes over him in a calculating way, though his hands continued to hold the Isis-doll clasped in his hands.

"I am," Odion replied, seeing no reason to lie.

"Well stop it," Marik admonished. "And anyways... I have something to tell you, though you won't like it." Pausing, Marik chewed absently at his lip, and watched Odion shuffle nervously, cat-like eyes narrowing as his mind conjured up fragmented ideas of what could be wrong with his brother.

"What is it?" Odion asked, hesitation clear in his voice.

"Well... I know you don't like Bakura, however," Marik started slowly, smoothing out the doll's dress, "you know how I feel as far as my," a cough, "relationships go." Odion frowned. Of course he knew his brother was gay.

Not that he, personally, agreed with it. No, Odion was completely against it. Their father made good connections when he was alive, working as a business man so as to afford his wife's medical treatment, so they had lived a good life, despite their heritage**(1)**. Any small thing could ruin that, however. Even white people were stoned to death for being gay; just imagine if a black man came out and said it.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Odion nodded and waited for Marik to continue.

"Well, you see... Bakura and I kind of had... A joining of sorts," Marik stated, flipping some of his blonde bangs from his face. Odion could feel his cheeks heating up, and his fists tightened at the thought of somebody defiling his little brother. "We didn't have sex, so you can calm down," Marik chuckled, watching as the veins in Odion's hands bulged beneath his dark skin, showing his anger.

"Then what was this _joining_ of yours?" Odion questioned, forcing himself to remain calm as he steepled his hands before his face, resting his chin on his knuckles and watching Marik carefully.

"I don't think you want the details."

"I think I do."

"He sucked me off," Marik said with a dramatic sigh, grinning as he watched Odion fight to keep his face calm. "And we kissed, of course. He wouldn't let me return the favor, and I fell asleep because... Well, it felt good and I was tired. I had nice dreams about him," Marik finished with a deep purr, watching as Odion stared at a certain patch of carpet, cheeks burning despite their dark color.

"I just figured I should tell you," Marik went on, "that Bakura and I are no longer simple room-mates. You're my brother, and you know everything about me." Standing up, the blonde placed the doll on the table with one, last, affectionate stroke, and strode towards the door.

"Whatever makes you happy," Odion sighed, fixing the doll to where it stood up, hands raised to cup its tiny golden necklace, false smile stretched across its porcelain face. Marik simply nodded, and exited the house.

Odion wasn't truly mad. He'd have to be a complete fool if he hadn't noticed that it was odd how close Marik and Bakura were, even for friends. He'd seen it coming, or knew that it was coming. He'd just hoped that some pretty lady would appear, sweeping Marik up into her charms and love, showing him that Bakura wasn't necessary anymore.

Groaning, he rubbed at his temples, wishing this head-ache away.

"Oh Isis," Odion rumbled, running a finger along the fragile doll's cheek, "watch over him for me, please, sister. Just watch him and make him happy."

-(-o-)-

Bakura stared at his crotch.

He wondered how it would happen.

Would a giant cock just appear on his body, or would it slowly grow, inch by inch through the night? It'd be hard to explain to Marik why all of a sudden Bakura had to go out and by new under-wear due to the fact that Bakura just randomly grew in penis-size.

Chewing at this inside of his lip, he practically jumped out of his skin when he heard Marik opening the door. Quickly collecting himself, he acted like nothing had happened, glaring angrily at the newspaper sitting on the table.

"Hey, Bakura," Marik greeted, closing the door and leaning in, stealing a kiss. The blonde went to move away, but Bakura pulled him in closer, keeping their lips attached. He could feel Marik's smile through the kiss, and eventually released the boy, grinning up at his partner.

"Wow. I want to be greeted like that everyday," Marik commented, pretending to be flustered as he fanned at his face. "What's a man to do with something amazing as that?" With a satisfied smirk, Bakura watched as Marik removed his coat, hanging it up on one of the hooks by the door.

The Egyptian then sat on the couch, leaning over and pressing his mouth against Bakura's neck. He just let his lips linger, there, however, doing nothing. "How was your day?" Marik finally asked, and Bakura felt goose-bumps break out over his body as Marik's warm breath floated against his skin.

"It was fine," Bakura replied, eyes narrowing as he stared at the wall. He kept his voice gruff and low, giving nothing away as he felt Marik shift a little bit, studying the pale man sitting beside him on the couch.

"Well, I'm hungry. Anything in particular you want?" Marik questioned, cocking his head to the side and watching his albino friend.

"Not particularly," Bakura commented, crossing his arms over his chest. "Just no more of those sissy salads you've been slipping Sennen lately. You think I can't see you giving her those Vegetarian books?"

Marik merely smirked, and stood up, hands on his hips as he watched Bakura in a clearly amused way. "She's my robot too. You programmed her that way. If you want to blame anyone, blame yourself. And I'll keep giving her whatever recipes I want. If you'd like otherwise, quit being a lazy ass and go down to the bookstore."

With that, Marik exited the room, not doubt walking off to rattle out his instructions to the golden robot. Bakura watched him disappear, and quickly shifted his gaze, glaring angrily at the fabric of his britches. Arthur had said probably tomorrow, but Bakura could only hope for faster results. Shifting his gaze to the clock, Bakura saw that it was already ten o clock.

Sighing, he ruffled his white bangs, and closed his eyes. He could still only wonder if he'd feel it or anything like that. If he hadn't been so embarrassed about it, he would've asked more questions.

He didn't just want to be sitting next to Marik, and then all of a sudden have a giant bulge in his pants! It'd be hard to explain, especially if he and Marik weren't doing anything special. Or, God forbid, Bakura was watching an old lady pass by, or watching Sennen. That'd be difficult to explain.

_Oh this, Marik? Yeah, I just randomly get boners when I see robots. Their bolts make me get a stiffy._

Groaning, Bakura dropped his face into the palm of his hand, glaring at the carpet from between his fingers. Picking up the newspaper, he scanned aimlessly through it until he heard Marik call for him. Folding up the paper, he tossed it onto the table before roaming into the kitchen.

Marik was sitting at the table, eating a salad. Sennen was setting a plate of steak down on the table, and Bakura smirked, realizing that Marik had taken the albino's tastes into account.

Plopping down in his seat, Bakura dispelled all thoughts of penises and other such problems, and focused solely on shoving the delicious meat down his throat, relishing in the fact that Sennen was such a good cook.

When they had finished, Sennen took their plates and began washing them. Bakura rose from his seat, preparing to head into the living-room, but was stopped by Marik's hand. Blinking, Bakura shifted his gaze to the mischievous purple eyes.

"Come with me. There's this new tonic I'm thinking of selling, and I want you to try it out for me," Marik purred, dragging Bakura back farther into the room. Scowling, Bakura retracted his hand, and glared at Marik's back.

"Using me as a guinea pig... Dumb bitch," Bakura spat, but followed along regardless. They entered Marik's room, and Bakura was immediately bombarded by hundreds of different smells, causing his sense of smell to be practically slaughtered by the onslaught of scents.

Clasping a pale hand to his mouth, he allowed his air to be filtered by his fingers, watching as Marik entered the room, completely un-phased as he led Bakura to the center of the room.

Bakura sighed, but stood there, arms crossed and face showing irritation. Marik's room was the complete opposite of Bakura's. Whereas Bakura's was havoc, with machine parts everywhere and oil stains, Marik's was nice and orderly. He had two large, metal bookcases side-by-side that Bakura had made. That'd been back before they'd known each other, though, and it always amused Bakura to see it. The blonde had been irritated, since he claimed if he'd waited a few years, he wouldn't have had to buy it.

Now, the shelves were set up neatly. They alternated from having books and potions of all sorts. Off to the side, there was a tall, wooden vanity with a large mirror, reflecting everything in the room. A few unfinished projects littered its brown surface, along with notes and recipes stuffed on small slips of paper in the mirror's frame. He could see pictures of Marik and Odion littering parts of it as well, their skin showing up darker then normal due to the black and white inking.

He heard a loud thunk behind him, and Bakura turned on his heel, spotting Marik holding a large, ornamental golden chair. The back part of it was decorated in large swirls, and the pattern was repeated on its lavender cushion. Marik placed it in the middle of the room, the curled toes of the furniture sinking into the lush carpet.

"Sit," Marik commanded, and Bakura arched an eyebrow, lips pulling up to reveal a snarl, showing that these orders would go un-obeyed. Marik groaned and rolled his eyes, staring angrily across at his partner. "C'mon, Bakura! This will benefit you."

Bakura perked up at that. He was ever the opportunist, and he certainly loved when things worked in his favor, and not in others. Grinning, he moved over to the chair, sitting down in it and crossing his legs. Marik smirked, and turned away, moving over to one of the shelves. Pressing a button, Bakura heard the gears clanking and whirring as the metal shelves rotated, bringing around the particular shelf that Marik had been searching for.

Pulling a bottle off the shelf, Marik trotted back over to Bakura. Uncorking the stuff, the Egyptian bent at his waist, moving his face in close to Bakura's and waving the tonic underneath Bakura's nose.

"This is a non-ingestive tonic," Marik mumbled in a low voice. "I've had a lot of whores asking for things to put in necklaces. They wanted something to help bring people more... Into the 'mood'."

Bakura chuckled, and allowed the scent to curl around him. Leaning forward ever-so-slightly, the albino let his nose-tip touch Marik's, a deep, low growl coming from his throat. Marik laughed, and corked the bottle, stepping away from Bakura.

Crimson orbs followed the cocky blonde man, narrowing his eyes as Marik placed the tonic on his vanity and moved back towards the albino. Bakura lifted his hands, placing them on Marik's slender hips. Marik smirked as Bakura lifted up his top a little, finger-tips brushing against Marik's softened skin.

Marik slid forward, knees spreading out as he moved onto Bakura's lap, resting his ass atop Bakura's cock, causing the albino to let out a small grunt. The blonde then leaned forward, hair tickling Bakura's neck as the tanned boy attacked his neck, nipping at Bakura's pale skin.

Panting slightly, Bakura allowed his hands to travel up and down Marik's body, staying clear of the markings on the boy's back. Dropping his pallid hands to Marik's knees, he slowly ran his fingers up Marik's thighs, and he could feel the boy tensing up against him, pressing their chests together, and allowed Bakura to feel Marik's excitement pressed against his stomach.

Feeling himself growing harder, Bakura paused in his motions. What if this went to far, and his cock hadn't made itself bigger yet? But God, Marik's teeth and tongue against his neck...

Speaking of Marik's tongue, the wet muscle was leaving a hot trail down Bakura's skin, stopping as he hit the fabric of a shirt. Lifting up his hands, Marik began snapping open the buttons of Bakura's shirt, pushing the blue fabric down his partner's shoulders, revealing Bakura's corpse-like chest.

"Well aren't you just a regular little skeleton," Marik chuckled, leaning in to kiss Bakura again. The albino snorted, and pushed Marik from his lap. The blonde made a noise of protest as he hit the ground, and glared angrily up at the emotionless Bakura.

Without blinking, Bakura reached down, grasping Marik by his shirt and hoisting the taller boy up. Marik made another noise of complaint, but Bakura ignored it, and tossed Marik to the bed, watching as the blonde flopped like a fish against the purple covers before finally recovering.

Laying on his stomach, Marik rose up onto his elbows, preparing to turn around. A shadow fell across him though, and he realized that Bakura had clambered onto the bed, towering over-top Marik on all fours.

Marik rolled over, and stared up at Bakura with lust in his lidded eyes. Seeing that gaze, Bakura threw away all thoughts of how big or small he was, and began ridding Marik of his clothing, leaving the boy naked as he stared up at Bakura.

Frowning, Bakura reached down and unbuttoned his pants, kicking them off onto the floor. He paused as he reached down to remove his underwear, trying to hide his nervousness. If Marik laughed... Bakura just might have to commit murder.

He was taken by surprise, however, as Marik's hands rested on his chest, pushing him up and over until Bakura was on his back, and Marik was rising up above him, all smirks and secrets. Letting his hands wander down, Marik removed Bakura's underwear, and leaned in, kissing the albino.

"You were worried about your size," Marik muttered, lips trailing Bakura's jaw-line, leaving small markings. Bakura grumbled something, but Marik ignored it, and slowly began working his way down, pausing to lick momentarily at Bakura's nipples.

The albino groaned and arched his back, attempting, somehow, to make the feeling intensify. He could hear Marik chuckled, before moving on, leaving Bakura's nipples in favor of going down to something else...

**`Twas brillig, and the slithy toves~**

Marik wrapped his lips around Bakura's cock, causing the albino's face to scrunch up from the pleasure. He let out a deep throated growl as Marik teased the tip of it, tongue slithering around the member, causing Bakura to buck his hips, attempting to make Marik take more then he already was.

The blonde held Bakura's hips down, however, and went at his own pace, head bobbing up and down as he pleased his partner for the first time. From Bakura's racing breath, however, he knew that Bakura was getting closer.

Lifting up, he released Bakura cock suddenly, causing the albino to cry and his hips to jerk. Growling, he watched as Marik's face swum closer, and he felt the tanned boy's member rub against his own. Moaning, Bakura leaned forward, kissing Marik roughly.

Pulling away, Marik slid over to one of his dresser drawers and pulled a bottle of lube from one of the drawers. Bakura opened his eyes, watching with a furrowed brow as Marik coated his fingers.

"Woah! Woah! Woah!" Bakura growled, lurching up into a sitting position and glared at Marik. "Who says I'm bottoming?" the albino demanded, not comfortable with this turn of events. Bakura just wasn't a 'submissive' person, after all.

"You can either bottom," Marik said, eyes narrowing, "or masturbate in your room. Alone. And I'll make sure to prance around naked, all the while, so it'll be a continuous task for you."

Bakura's jaw snapped open, ready to deliver an argument on his behalf, but just lay back, a snarl leaving his lips. "I can't believe I'm doing this... This is a one time thing, you got that!"

_Because after that tonic kicks in, there's no way in hell I'll ever bottom again!_

Glaring, he jumped when he felt Marik's finger inside of him. Scrunching up his eyes, he waited for the pleasure to kick in, before moaning out loud, letting Marik know to add another finger.

When all of that was done, Marik pulled his fingers out, and pulled himself up, kissing Bakura deep. Propping himself up, Marik pushed into Bakura, watching the albino arch his back and cry out from having the blonde inside of him.

Smirking, Marik watched, before pulling out, and thrusting in again.

**Smut done.**

-(-o-)-

Marik awoke, arching and stretching his back. It'd been four weeks since he'd first started actually sleeping with Bakura, so it came as no surprise to him when he rolled over and saw a naked Bakura asleep, snoring, in his bed.

Standing up, Marik quickly located his clothes, and tugged them on. Moving over to his vanity, he saw his golden jewelry, and quickly clasped it onto his skin, exiting the bedroom and heading into the kitchen where he ordered Sennen to make breakfast.

Plopping down at the kitchen table, he stared at the table, spotting the doll that he'd been playing with the first time he'd ever told Bakura about his wish to have a child. Sighing, Marik picked up the toy and fiddled with it, before casting it aside, not wanting to look at it anymore. Chances were, that was never going to happen, and it was best to just shove those thoughts completely from his mind.

-(-o-)-

Bakura strode into the kitchen, plopping down at the table across from Marik. The blonde smirked at him, and Bakura flipped him the bird, shoving his tongue out as he did so. Bakura supposed he should've been mad that the tonic he'd gotten from Arthur hadn't given him any results at all, but he wasn't.

After all, it turned out he was perfectly capable of pleasing Marik the way he was.

Picking up the morning paper that Sennen had brought in, Bakura rifled through its contents, not even bothering to check the first page. He merely went straight for the middle. Bakura never really cared for the first page anyways: Always about things he couldn't give two shits about. Plus, Marik would tell him later on anyways.

Speaking of, the blonde's voice was cutting through his thoughts, and he peered over the top of the papers at his partner. Marik's lavender eyes were scanning the printing on the first page as he spoke:

"Tonics made by Arthur Hawkins were under recall, due to him accidentally handing out Fertility potions..." Marik scoffed. "This is why amateurs shouldn't mess with tonics. Really, how stupid was this man?"

Bakura froze, fingers tightening around his newspaper, eyes narrowing as he stared at Marik. "Marik" Bakura growled, voice lacking its usual animation, "what potions were switched?"

Marik blinked, and peered at the paper. "You could look at it yourself you know," the blonde sighed, but answered the question anyways. "It was the Penis Enlargement tonics. Apparently he sold about ten that day. It's sad, really," Marik mused, not noticing the shocked look on Bakura's face, "that some men are so insecure about their bodies that they have to do stuff like this."

Sennen entered then, placing down a plate of eggs, bacon and sausage before Bakura. The albino's eyes widened, and his nostrils flared. Tossing his paper way, he lurched away from the table, vomiting all over the floor.

"Bakura!" Marik cried, rushing over to his partner. "What in the world...?"

"Marik," Bakura croaked, "I think I'm pregnant.

-(-o-)-

**(1) Okay. I did a little research into this, because we never covered this in school. As I can understand it (**mind you, my sources could be incredibly wrong**) but black people were not necessarily 'slaves' in England during the Victorian era, but they were still looked down upon. They could get jobs, and work for wages, though they got less then a white man. So mind you, the Ishtars came from Egypt. While they're not looked completely down upon, they're not held as high in regard as a white man would be.**

**Boring chapter is boring. Sorry. Wanted to bring Marik's past in a bit. However, can any of you spot what brought about Marik's passion for tonic-making. There's a hint in there. And there was probably way to much detail, because I'm trying to write this more as a... As a real 'story', and not as a fanfiction... Does that make sense?**

**And yeah, Bakura totally gets horny from clocks and shit. Just pops him a stiffy right out. Cuckoo clock? Psh. Bakura's boner beats it to the chase.**

**Moving on.**

**Damn you smut... I didn't make it detailed on purpose. I reaaaaaaally didn't want to write about each thrust, mkay? By the way, they take turns. So all of you Bakura-topping fans can make up your own fantasies about what they got up too.**

**Thank LadySunami for some of the ideas used!  
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**Please review!**

**See-ya!**

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Chapter 4: Chapter 4: Fights<strong>**

* * *

><p>Marik stared blankly at the wall.<p>

After Bakura had delivered that bombshell of news, he'd moved into the bathroom, slamming the door a little bit to hard afterwards. Now Marik was left at the kitchen table, not quite knowing what to think as Sennen zoomed around him, cleaning up their breakfast meal.

Sucking in a deep breath, Marik arose from his seat, and took slow steps towards the bathroom. Part of him was over-joyed: He could finally have the daughter (hopefully) he always wanted! But then again, part of him knew that Bakura and he could not raise a child! They were con-artists and thieves! They weren't proper role-models, nor were they very responsible.

Sighing, he placed a hand on the doorknob, and twisted it roughly. He expected Bakura to be puking, or perhaps lying on the floor crying his eyes out. He had _not_ expected, however, that Bakura would be poising a knife over his stomach, eyes shimmering with crazed emotions.

"What the hell are you doing?" Marik barked, rushing forward and smacking he knife from his partner's hand. Bakura let out a savage snarl, and shifted his hand to Marik's throat, forcing the boy backwards against the wall.

Marik let out a slight groan as his back collided with the wooden surface, causing him to hiss and arch forward, head painfully pressed against the wood. Bakura eyes ticked from Marik's face to his back, then placed a soothing hand on Marik's stomach. The blonde relaxed just a bit, before Bakura roughly pushed forward, causing Marik's back to make contact with the wood.

Letting out a sharp cry, Marik could feel the carvings on his back screaming with protest from this abuse. Nostrils flared, Marik pushed past the haze of pain and kicked Bakura harshly in the crotch, causing the albino to topple to his knees.

Huffing angrily, Marik lurched forward, fingers knotting themselves in Bakura's silvery strands. The white man let out a pained noise as he was hoisted up by the roots of his hair, pale face leveling with Marik's own.

"What the _fuck_ was that?" Marik demanded, raising a hand and slapping Bakura across the face harshly. Bakura's eyes widened from the blow, and began struggling in Marik's grasp. But before Bakura could land a blow, Marik wrapped his free hand around Bakura's wrists, binding them together.

Shoving off of the wall, he pushed Bakura forward until the whittete fell roughly into the bathtub, ass smacking the porcelain as Marik towered over him. The blonde stared down at Bakura, resisting the urge to grin murderously as he watched the whittete fumble about, hands slipping around as he attempted to find purchase in the slippery place.

"Marik!" Bakura growled, lips pulling back as his fangs rubbed against one another. He eventually quit trying to get out, and just lay back, head thumping against the rim of the tub, hands falling to lay limply against the bottom.

Marik said nothing as he moved to sit on the rim of the tub, not even wanting to look at Bakura right then. He didn't want to see that pale face that, a few hours ago, would've filled him with warmth and feelings that he'd often craved as a child.

Right now, however, he just felt a welling of disgust and anger.

How _dare_ Bakura just decide that _their child _would die? Who was he to point the knife at his stomach like that? Not _only_ would that have ended the life of their unborn child, but Bakura would've died as well! Marik.. Marik was _sick_ of people he liked dying. Killing a man in the street was one thing; but this... This was not and _could not _happen.

"Bakura, what did you think you were_ doing_?" Marik ground out, teeth rubbing against each other as his jaw locked up. He knew what Bakura was doing, but somewhere, deep down, he could only hope that he was incorrect, and that his partner would never do such a thing.

"I was going to kill whatever little thing was inside of me!" Bakura hissed. Tanned lids slid over top lavender orbs, and Marik nodded slowly, already knowing good and well.

"What..." Marik paused for a moment. "You don't even know if you're really pregnant Bakura. You could've murdered yourself for nothing." Rising from his sitting position, Marik kept his back to Bakura. "And even if you_were_ pregnant... Bakura that was stupid!"

"I don't care how stupid it was!" Bakura barked. "You're not the one with a little monstrosity growing inside of you!" Now that everything was calm, Bakura was finally able to get a hold on the rim, and managed to pull himself up, standing next to his partner.

Marik turned around and latched a hand onto Bakura's strands once more, tugging harshly and relishing in the wince he received.

"Quit calling her a monstrosity," Marik rumbled, teeth gritted as he saw Bakura's eyes flare. A pale hand came up and smacked Marik's own away, and the albino shoved his face upwards into Marik's.

"Look at you! Calling it a 'her' already! You're disgusting and pathetic!" Bakura spat, shoving at Marik's shoulder, causing the blonde to stumble a little. "You're so wrapped up that fucked up little mind of yours, that you're not even taking me into consideration."

Wincing, Bakura realized that he sounded like a woman bitching at her husband. That was a low-blow to his pride, and it was certainly _not_ okay. Bakura didn't like his pride being fucked with; in fact, it made him even_more_ pissed off at Marik.

"Fuck you!" Bakura finally spat, and shoved Marik once more, sending the blonde away from him as Bakura stormed out of the room. Marik made no move to stop him, and that was fine by Bakura.

He didn't want to see Marik right now, anyways.

-(-o-)-

Marik stared at the clock.

Bakura had been gone for _hours_.

Ever since their little spat... Clenching his eyes tight, Marik had to remind himself that this wasn't his fault. Bakura shouldn't have been trying to kill their child! The albino was going to be a mother, for Christ's Sake!

Pausing, Marik realized that, if Bakura didn't pull anymore stunts... He would be a father. Sucking in a large breath, the enormity of the task came crashing down on him. Being a father meant a lot of things, and unfortunately, due to bad experiences, Marik didn't know them.

That brought about thoughts of Odion. How could Marik tell his already disapproving brother?-! And on top of that; what would the neighbors say? Gays were already a sin, and were stoned! What would happen to them if people found out they had a _child_ together?

That was basically spitting in God's face, and telling him that all of his plans were useless because a grown man just popped out a baby. Then Marik started thinking of _where_ the baby would come out? How? What doctor would help them with this?

Marik leaped up from the couch and began pacing frantically, tugging at his hair. When people were around, Marik could be calm and collected, but with nobody around and all his thoughts nagging at him, he couldn't help but practically rip the yellow strands out by their roots.

What if the baby died? What if the house wasn't safe? What if Bakura attempted suicide?

_Bakura!_

Marik lurched up from the couch, and shot across the living room to the door. He grasped the door knob and flung it open, eyes wild as he almost stepped on a black lump sitting at the door. With a cry of alarm, Marik halted his foot in mid-air, and stared.

Crimson eyes stared angrily up at him, clearly disgruntled at being caught. Bakura snorted angrily, and bundled his black trench-coat about him, making sure to ruffle the collar a bit so that way it popped up and blocked him from view.

Had it not been for earlier, Marik probably would've laughed and mocked his partner at this childish display. As it was, however, he could only feel a slight calm settling over his body. Retracting his foot, Marik paused only to nudge Bakura with the toe of his shoe.

"Come inside," the tanned man grunted, and he twirled on his heel, re-entering the house. From the sounds of rustling fabric and footsteps, he could tell that Bakura was right behind him. Giving out the most minimal of sighs, Marik resisted the urge to smile as he turned around and face Bakura.

The pale man looked uncomfortable, and kept glaring at Marik, clearly not happy.

"I was going to wait until later, then pretend like I went out and... Did something," Bakura confessed, clearly seeing no reason to lie now that Marik had caught the man quite literally on their doorstep. And, yet again, Marik resided the urge to grin.

"You're a fucking idiot," Marik replied, nodding sagely as he stepped closer to Bakura. The albino's defense automatically went up, and he even went so far as to raise his hands, forming them into fists as he positioned his feet, readying for the attack.

Ignoring that, Marik continued forward, and grasped Bakura's cheeks, giving the albino a type of fish-face. Pulling their faces in close, Marik allowed the tip of his nose to brush Bakura's, still resisting the urge to laugh like a maniac as he saw Bakura's eyes all scrunched up, lips being pushed outwards, not matching his irritated expression at all.

"What's wrong?" Marik purred. "I just want to hold you." Dropping his hands, Marik curled his arms about Bakura's waist, and brought the albino in even closer, making sure their stomachs barely brushed against each other. "And our future child..."

"I thought you said we couldn't be sure I'm pregnant?" Bakura grumbled, attempting not to enjoy the embrace. "And if I am, I'm rooting for a boy."

Marik snorted, before pausing. "I actually have a tonic," Marik commented, rocking back and forth slightly as he made Bakura move with him. "If you have the balls, anyways." Cocking a blonde eyebrow, Marik turned the corner of his lips up in a smirk.

"I dunno. You seemed to love my balls last night."

"I think your balls are what got us into this mess," Marik grumbled.

"My own semen impregnated me?" Bakura countered, before lowering a hand and grasping Marik's crotch. The blonde boy grunted, and let out a slightly wheezing noise. "Yes, well, I think I've made my point."

"Whatever!" Marik barked. "Look, we're getting off topic! Do you want to take the tonic, or not?"

"Fine, fine," Bakura sighed, before waving a hand. "Off you dance then, my pretty. Let me watch that beautiful little ass of yours in motion." Marik lifted a hand, ready to strike Bakura, but the albino held up a hand. "You wouldn't hit a pregnant person, would you?"

"You're an idiot!" Marik shouted, before whirling around and stalking off into his room. Bakura leaned against the wall, and indeed watched as Marik disappeared from view, a smirk residing on his lips as he watched the boy attempt to keep his walk stiff and robotic, as to hide the movement that his hips made.

His amusement ended, however, as Marik returned with a bottle. Whatever was inside of it was a completely clear liquid, and Bakura narrowed his eyes at it. He readily didn't want to drink anything; he'd learned the hard way, after all, not to trust tonics.

But this was Marik, and he sincerely hoped his partner double-checked things. After all, hadn't he been blathering this morning about what a rookie mistake Arthur had made?

"Go pee in this," Marik commanded, shaking the little bottle in front of Bakura. Blinking, dumb-founded, Bakura stared stupidly at the blonde before him. Marik made a noise, and shook the bottle again.

"Why? And what if my piss makes it over-flow or something?" Bakura questioned, eyebrows drawing together with clear mistrust. "I haven't peed all morning. I could fucking shoot a river out."

"I expected you to have the common sense to move your dick to the side," Marik replied drily. "Anyways," he continued on, ignoring the dirty look Bakura gave him, "you just have to pee in it, then tell me what color it turns from through the door. Then toss it," Marik shrugged. "No point in keeping it after that."

"All right..." Bakura agreed reluctantly, and took the bottle. Moving forward, he headed towards the bathroom. He eyed the toilet, before gripping the neck of the bottle. Uncorking it, he unzipped his pants and took aim.

-(-o-)-

"So it was red, huh," Marik whispered, voice slightly devoid of emotion as he sat there, holding Bakura tightly to his chest. The albino looked completely confused as to Marik's mood, and he could only assume that he was pregnant. He wasn't necessarily happy about it, but Marik seemed pleased. He supposed he could deal with being pregnant.

"So, Marik. What're we going to do about a room for the little monstrosity, huh?" Bakura joked, prodding his partner and flashing him a toothy grin. "Little bitch could always go hide under the sink."

"Fuck you!" Marik shouted, hands connecting roughly with Bakura's shoulders, sending the albino sprawling off of the bed. Bakura made a noise of surprise as he connected with Marik's perfumed and cushy carpet.

"What?" Bakura demanded angrily, rising up and lurching forwards. He jumped onto the bed on his hands and knees, glaring angrily into Marik's broken face. "What? It was just a joke, Ishtar! Grow up! At least we're having the damned thing, right?"

"No, Bakura," Marik replied.

"No what?" Bakura spat, faltering slightly as confusion creased his face.

"Bakura... Red means no..."

-(-o-)-

**Sorry, this chapter's shorter then others. But... Uh... Yeah.**

**For some reason Touzouku-ou kept walking along the floor of the desktop. Bitch... Seriously, he usually stays on the walls or something, but today that little fucker...**

**That reminds me~ Somebody actually added Rogueshipping to the Urban Dictionary. Holy fuck... Whoever you are... xD Oh my Gooood, I totally spazzed when I saw it. Even posted that shit on Tumblr. Uh-huh~**

**So, I'm out now, to eat the nasty diet shit my mom's making. Fun. -_-**

**(**I edited !)

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Visits and Threeways<strong>**

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><p><em>Why am I doing this? It's so stupid! He's not worth it!<em>

But he was. Marik was worth it, as much as Bakura denied it. So that's why Bakura was doing _this _harmful degrading thing! All because Marik had quit eating, quit talking... If Bakura didn't know better, he would've thought _Marik _was the one who had been pregnant!

Ever since Marik had found out that the stupid liquids color was red, he'd been incredibly depressed, not wanting anything to do with anybody. They'd slept together, and that had been the extent of their interactions.

So now Bakura sat on Marik's bed, mouth twisted into a savage grimace as he eyed himself. He was wearing tight leather panties, that didn't quite fit, seeing as they were made for women. Straps ran up his stomach, and pressed on his nipples in an uncomfortable way. His legs were clad in skin-tight boots that shimmered in the candle-lit room as Bakura moved slightly on the bed, the thong-strap rubbing at him in an annoying way.

All around him were rose petals, giving off the intoxicating scent that Marik had planned on selling to the whores. Bakura had meant for them to be there to put Marik in the mood, but so far, it had just left Bakura sitting alone on a bed as he panted, and moved his thighs a little, attempting to avoid touching himself.

With a breath of relief, he heard the front door open. "Thank God," Bakura muttered, and slid off the bed. Pausing to stare into Marik's vanity mirror, Bakura pushed away stray strands of hair, and gave the glass his best sexy smirk.

Grinning, he placed a hand on one hip, and confidently strode out of the room, making his way down the hall as he swung his ass from side to side. No way would Marik be able to resist this!

"Oh, Marik," Bakura called, chuckling low and deep as he rounded the corner.

Just to come face to chest with Odion.

"Holy shit!" Bakura screeched, jerking backwards and thumping against the wall. Odion's own yellow eyes popped wide as he stumbled backwards, finally revealing a stunned Marik. Bakura felt his face heating up, and watched as Marik quickly rushed to shut the door, before pushing past his stunned brother.

"Bakura... What the hell?" Marik questioned, clearly attempting to cover his amusement as he ran an eye appreciatively over Bakura's figure. _At least he likes the view, _the albino thought savagely.

"Don't 'what the hell me'!" Bakura snapped instead. His mood had been effectively ruined, and his beet red face was showing it. Sometimes, Bakura truly hated his completely pallid complexion. "Why is your brother here?"

"Odion just wanted to visit, because he hasn't been over here in a while," Marik explained, before turning to face his brother. "Odion, I'm sorry you had to see this," Marik apologized as he attempted to block Bakura's body from view.

"Gods..." Odion muttered, closing his eyes and walking away towards the couch. "Brother, when you said you were dating and having sex... I had hoped you were lying!" Bakura gave a start, and glared angrily up at Marik.

"You told him we were having dating? And fucking?" Bakura spat.

"Yes," his partner said simply, before grabbing Bakura's hand and dragging the albino down the hallway again, leading him into Marik's bedroom. The blonde paused and sniffed the air, before turning hungry eyes onto his lover.

"Oh, you're paying for this later on," Marik rumbled, voice deep from longing. Bakura's nostrils flared in protest, but he quickly turned his back on Marik. All that gained him, though, was a smack on the ass as he walked away to get his clothes back.

Bakura began peeling off the tight leather on his own, but was disrupted as he suddenly felt arms looping around his waist. Frowning, Bakura pushed Marik off of him, and quickly retrieved his clothes from underneath the bed.

Marik didn't protest, and merely watched as Bakura tugged back on his crinkled clothes. "You seem to be in a better mood," the albino commented sourly, eyes narrowing as he watched Marik lean up against the wall.

"I think we should get a puppy," Marik said in an off-handed voice. Bakura froze, before turning an incredulous stare to his partner, clearly showing with his eyes that he did not agree with this one bit. Marik made a sniffing noise, and Bakura tugged on his last article of clothing-his waist coat.

"Marik, we're not getting a damned mutt!" Bakura spat, ruffling his hair and pulling it from underneath his collar. Lavender eyes glared mutinously at him, but Bakura brushed off his partner's gaze in favor of striding out of the room, grimacing as he saw Odion sitting on their couch, being given tea by Sennen.

Marik quickly followed after, and stormed up behind Bakura. "Who says we can't get a dog? You?" Marik gave a quick, harsh laugh. "Do you forget who pays a lot of the bills and rent? You're not alone in this house, Bakura Touzouku!"

Rolling his eyes, Bakura shoved his hands in his pockets and walked away from his lover in favor of flopping down in a chair and propping his feet up, barking an order for Sennen to bring him some tea.

"You can't just walk away from our problems, Bakura!" Marik shouted, stomping into the living room and sitting down next to his brother, arms crossed over his chest as he nervously examined his sibling. Bakura's eyes narrowed, and he knew something fishy was going on.

Sitting up, Bakura placed his elbows on his bony knees, and glared through his snowy white fringe at the Egyptian. "Marik, we don't have any problems! And if we do, let's discuss them when your giant oaf of a brother isn't here. And I'm serious about that dog," the albino said simply, shifting his gaze to Sennen, who had just clattered into the room.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Bakura felt just a bit calmer with the nice, chilled cup resting between his palms. Lifting the sweet, sugary substance to his lips, he thankfully downed half of it, before he realized he was receiving murderous glares from both of the black men in his home.

"Oh, bugger," Bakura muttered, setting down his cup. "What is it, both of you?"

"It's not just the dog, Bakura," Marik said quietly, before allowing his eyes to turn to steel. He studied the albino sitting across from him, a contemplative expression taking over his facial features as he watched Bakura wait silently.

"Well then, enlighten me," Bakura finally said, seeing as no other answer was forth-coming. Splaying his fingers out, he gave Marik a half-amused glance, and picked up his tea once more, indulging himself in the delicious liquid.

"I think I should go live with Odion for a while," Marik said slowly, causing Bakura to spew his tea every where. Both Egyptian men blinked in surprise, and watched the droplets of tea spatter across the hardwood surface.

Bakura's teeth gnashed together, and he jumped up, ready to strangle Marik. He was stopped, however, when he doubled over in pain, knees smacking the carpet as vomit spewed from his mouth.

"Bakura!" Marik said, eyes widening in surprise as he lurched down, going to help Bakura up. He was smacked away, however, by a vicious, claw bearing hand.. Bakura staggered to his feet, and let out low, huffing gasps.

"You wanted to leave so bad," Bakura snarled, vomit flecking from his mouth with each word, "then go! I don't need you, Ishtar!" Reaching forward, Bakura shoved weakly at Marik. The blonde stumbled slightly, but other then that stayed put. He reached forward, and grasped Bakura's shoulders.

The albino broke down into tears, and pressed his face into Marik's chest. "Don't leave me!" He screamed. "Don't you ever leave me!" Marik staggered slightly under Bakura's weight, but led him over to the couch, ignoring Odion's angry gaze.

"Sennen!" Marik called, "clean up this mess!" The robot did as commanded, while Marik held the crying Bakura in his lap. Frowning, Marik realized that Bakura was still exhibiting signs that could lead back to pregnancy.

Staring down at his wet shirt, Marik lifted an apologetic gaze to Odion.

"Sorry, brother. Maybe you can visit another time?" Marik queried, keeping a hand on Bakura's snow-white hair, and allowing the prideful albino man to cry to his heart's content. In fact, the blonde had to seriously wonder if Odion could hear Marik over the noise that Bakura was making.

But Odion nodded, and headed towards the door. The tall, bald man hesitated at the doorway for just a moment, before shaking his head and exiting the home. Marik knew his brother wasn't happy, but there wasn't much he could do at this point. Plus, it seemed like Bakura really needed him more right now.

Marik had considered moving in with Odion, just for a bit, to get some space away from Bakura. It seemed like every time he looked at the man, he was left fantasizing about the two raising their daughter together. Honestly, it just hurt.

Not to mention, Bakura had seemed convinced that trying different types of sex or contact would make Marik feel better, when indeed it often made it worse. Not during the actions, of course, but afterwards, when they lay in the sweaty, breathy aftermath of it all.

Staring down at the man in his lap, though, Marik decided he couldn't leave just yet.

"Bakura," Marik said softly, rousing the albino's attention. Bakura stared up at Marik with puffy eyes, nose red and swollen as it dripped with snot. Lips pulling back into a genuine smile, the blonde grabbed Bakura's hand, and ran it beneath his nose.

"Ugh! What the hell?" Bakura demanded, doing another emotional one eighty. Pushing Marik roughly away, the albino quickly hopped up from his partner's lap. Sniffing angrily, Bakura left the room quickly. Marik watched him go, sighing, before shifting his attention to their robotic maid who was busy clanking around the living room, cleaning up the last of Bakura's vomit.

When Bakura returned, his face was clean once more, and his irritated expression was back in place. Marik stayed seated on the couch, and watched as Bakura waveringly made his way into the room once more.

"You were going to leave?" Bakura spat harshly, eyes narrowing as he glared daggers at the blonde. Marik held up his hands, and rose from his seat, not really in the mood to argue anymore. He wasn't going to deny his thought process, but right now there was something of more importance.

"Bakura, we need to get you to a doctor. You're still exhibiting signs of pregnancy." Marik made his way slowly towards his lover, and watched as Bakura crouched down ever-so-slightly, like a cornered cat.

"I don't care what I'm exhibiting! You wanted to leave me!" Bakura spat, lurching forward and slamming his fist into Marik's gut. Grunting, the blonde doubled over, and cursed the Gods that he couldn't hit Bakura back. Marik wouldn't risk killing the baby.

"Nngh... I deserved that, probably," Marik admitted, though his voice was strained. "Okay... Yes, I wanted to leave you, because seeing you everyday hurt. And you know what?" Marik rose back up again, eyes leveling with Bakura's. "You didn't make it any better by having sex everyday, either!"

Bakura's face flushed, and his expression twisted with rage. "I was trying to make you happy again! You weren't eating, and-"

"Actually," Marik said slowly, giving a guilty grin, "I was sneaking food after you fell asleep..."

"What?-!" Bakura barked angrily, kicking Marik harshly in the shin, causing the blonde to topple to the floor. Clutching at his knee, Marik glared at nothing in particular, not even bothering to look at the raging, hormonal Bakura.

"I can't believe you! I was worried about you!" Bakura screeched, stomping Marik on the ass and shoving him away with his foot. Marik took it all in stride, and waited until Bakura had finished ranting. Climbing to his feet, Marik gained purchase upon the carpet, and stared at Bakura.

"You done?" Marik queried.

"... Yes," Bakura muttered mutinously, dodging his eyes to the side.

"Good... I think we need to go back to that doctor you go those tonics from," Marik said simply. Bakura reacted immediately, and lurched forward. It was plain on his face that he disagreed completely, and Marik let out a sigh.

"We can't! We'll be killed!" the albino cried, eyes narrowing as he regarded Marik angrily. "That's what you want, isn't it? To get me killed? Huh, you fucking sick-"

Rolling his eyes, the Egyptian cuffed Bakura round the back of the head. "You're crazy," Marik commented easily, face splitting wide as he grinned. "And anyways, who says we have to tell him we're sleeping together? Just tell him your girlfriend wanted to experiment with some objects, and you were having a three-way, and then you accidentally got semen inside of you!"

"That plan is stupid!" Bakura huffed, crossing his arms.

Marik sighed, and pulled Bakura in close to him, arms circling his waist as he rested his chin on the fluffy-haired albino's head.

"Just take the bit and run with it."

-(-o-)-

**Sorry for the mood-swings! But this morning, when I wrote the first part, I was listening to Magic Dance and shit, but when I got home I was listening to Disturbed and just... Yeah. Funny, though, I usually can't listen to music and write. Eh.**

**...A crying Bakura... Uggggggh. Nooooooooooo. Dx The OOC-ness... It's necessary though, unfortunately...**

**CHAPTERS! Y U SO SHORT? ! ? ! ?**

**Please review~**

**(**I shall edit later. For now, though, I haven't eaten all day, and I'm hungry... So yeah. TURKEEEEEEY**)**

**~Edit~**

**Okay, I fixed some stuff... If it was confusing, I'm sorry...xD ? Okay, basically, they kept having sex, but quit talking and other stuff... Bakura was trying something new, in the hopes of persuading him to come out of his shell.  
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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 6: Chapter 6: We'll Make Up<strong>**

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><p><strong>Bakura's on Week 6<strong>

Marik popped open the door, and slid into his home, the cool breeze erupting from behind him as he slowly eased the oaken door to a stop, scarf fluttering in the air with all its tattered ends on full display to the microscopic bits of dust that cared to watch the spectacular show. Clutching what resided within his hands, Marik let out an irritable sigh and moved the rest of the way into his home, smart black shoes snapping against the hardwood floor.

A mechanical mouse whizzed past his feet, chattering as its small paws padded along the way, high pitched squeaks erupting from its fake mouth, non existent vocal chords easing themselves into the delicate sounds. Marik could hear the gears grinding against one another as the legs moved in that rotary way, clacking about in a mad scramble to see who could make the mouse move the fastest.

Fidgeting with his bangs, Marik took another stepped, and saw a ballerina pirouette across the floor. She paused, shining, bronze legs poised into the perfect position of an arabesque, arms spread long and wide with little fake chunks of fingers splayed properly. With a small twirl, the once extended leg curled inwards, and she formed the turn, before collapsing in on herself, the tip of her toe sliding down her calf to rest casually on the floor. Her body soon cascaded afterwards, falling to her knees before resigning her head to her lap, where she lay - still -.

Bakura was certainly getting elaborate.

Moving forward again, Marik watched as one or two more gadgets gurgled in the distance. Shaking his head, Marik decided that something was definitely wrong with Bakura. After all, that potion - with the color red - had basically denied the ability of Bakura being pregnant. But, then again, the tonic was made for women. Perhaps it didn't work the same for men?

Since he and Bakura had argued last, they'd refrained from sex at all. It was a simple thing to do, really, though Marik was never going to lie - their sex had been good. If he had the choice, it would not have been something he readily would've given up. However, he knew they could function fine without it. They'd been friends years before with no sexual interactions - Marik could go a few months.

On top of all that, Bakura had kept him busy. He'd started craving things that they never kept around the house, he vetoed every plan Marik had for visiting the Arthur Hawkins that gave Bakura the tonic, and the white haired man was all together just having the worst mood swings, along with spontaneous vomiting.

Bakura was constantly cooped up in the house, as a result, and along with that, his stomach had started to grow, giving the man a small bump in his once usually flat and smooth tummy. Marik had given the rudest of laughs when he'd seen it, but Bakura had snapped and began hitting Marik with a close by mechanical fox he'd been building, crashing it against the blonde's skull, and immediately sobering him up.

Marik winced, in current, and rubbed at his scalp.

"Bakura!" he barked, not even bothering with gentleness. It wasn't really in his nature to be nice, sweet and compassionate, and he was showing enough of that by just staying with the irritable man. "I'm back with your shit!"

"Just put it in the kitchen!" Bakura commanded, voice drifting from far back in his room. Sighing, Marik realized that Bakura had been creating things once more, cooped up in that oil spattered room, that looked like a child's playroom gone wrong.

Popping into the kitchen, Marik slid across the tiles, a dark spook in this world of constant movement. He shrugged his jacket from his shoulders, and snapped his scarf free of his neck. Both of them were flung across the back of a chair, the whispers of fabric against one another greeting his ears.

Twisting on his heels, he straightened his crisp white shirt, and muddled the buttons, cracking them open and releasing the opposite sides of his shirt. His chest revealed itself, and he ignored the goosebumps that spread across them. Instead, he moved his nimble fingers to his belt, and released the golden pin from its hole, sliding it out quite easily and removing the belt from his waist, tossing it over with his other articles of clothing. He'd get Sennen to clean it up all later, anyways.

Yawning, and stretching up high, Marik sauntered through the house, and back towards Bakura's room. He felt the waistband of his britches sink lower, and more of his stomach made itself quite evident to practically any being that cared to notice.

He eyed Bakura's door, before deciding that - to hell with it - he was entering. Sliding forward, he peeked into the room, and his eyes widened at the sight.

Bakura was sitting amidst an unusually neat room. No contraptions, gears, or screws littered the ground, and no oil splatters were available to Marik's view. The walls had been cleaned of any stains, the only evidence that there had ever been any at all were the faded out marks of some left to long to sit. Somehow, the pale haired man had managed to sweep up all bolts and screws that used to populate the bedroom, and taking various other materials with them.

Bakura himself was merely sitting, calm as a cucumber, on his bed. His legs were entwined with one another, and bent, forming an awkward, pretzel like shape. He had one hand resting hesitantly resting upon his kneecap, looking for all the world like a spider anticipating its next meal. The fingers skittered slightly, and the other hand prodded at a darkened nipple, poking the sensitive skin that resided high up on a thin chest, and above a small, healthy little bump.

Arching a blonde eyebrow, Marik stepped fully into the room.

"What the hell are you doing?"

The reaction was instant. Bakura let out a small yelp, and jerked backwards, both hands coming up to rest upon his chest, the fingers spreading wide as he protected the area like a woman stripped of her bodice.

Marik smirked cruelly, and strode forward, hands coming to slam down on either side of Bakura's thin body. The white haired man let out a low snarl of complaint, and lurched upwards, teeth pressing against one another as he attempted to give Marik his most threatening of glares.

"If you wanted someone to play with your nipples," Marik purred, "you know I'm here full time. And I'm free," the blonde added tactfully, grinning ruefully as he saw Bakura splutter, eyes burning with hate and anger.

"Get your annoying ass of me," Bakura commanded, giving Marik a rough shove. "I'm pissy, my nipples are changing colors, I'm gaining weight," here Bakura paused to suck in a breath, and Marik merely watched the man struggle, "and on top of everything I'm BORED. I spent all day cleaning, and I was throwing up continuously through the whole act but I couldn't _stop_ because I wanted to clean and I WILL FUCKING CUT YOU IF YOU DON'T QUIT GRINNING!" Bakura exploded, forming his hands into small fists at his side, preparing to launch a straight punch into Marik's gut, and see if the boy kept his grin then.

"Oh calm the hell down," Marik retorted, rolling his eyes and narrowing the kohl lined orbs. "I still say you're exhibiting signs of pregnancy." Sitting down on the bed beside Bakura, he lifted up a hand and stroked at the bared belly, feeling how abruptly the bump began and ended, hanging over Bakura's britches.

"I know," the white haired man agreed mournfully, and shook his head, bat like pieces waggling with the motion. His jagged, strong features were set into a grimace, and he eyed Marik's exploratory hand.

"Well," the blonde continued, "we could always call your bro-"

"Don't bring him into this," Bakura's voice cut straight through Marik's own, a wedge of ice. It split into the words and ruptured them on contact, killing them before they even had their turn to dance across the tip of Marik's tongue, and ruining all chances they ever had of freedom with their quick, cruel deaths.

Marik merely clamped his lips into a tight line, and shook his head slowly, bangs wagging about his forehead as he let out a breath through his nose. The nostrils flared slightly to accomodate the motion, but otherwise he stayed quite normal, hand pausing in its rubbing.

"Fine," he consented finally, though the word certainly had a bitter tinge to it. The perfect, vengeful tone of words that had lost others. These words knew, however, of the ice. They were also, Marik smirked inwardly, clever enough to avoid the ice returning.

All Marik had to do was cater to Bakura's needs. He was quite positive if he got Bakura in a good enough mood, he could sneak off and get Odion to contact the other Touzouku quite easily, and have him here in a day or two. Bakura would be much to satisfied to even bother offering an argument.

"Is there anything you want?" Marik questioned conversationally, staring at his nails as he crossed his legs, staring at nothing in particular. He had to be nonchalant about it though, was the kicker. If he was just all of a sudden a grooling puppy bowing down before its master, Bakura would never take the bit, and Marik's plan would be shot down like an inquisitive fly sniffing around a cowpie.

Bakura's gaze locked onto the man who had - possibly - impregnated him. He seemed to mull the subject over, crimson eyes narrowing to the point of where the whites weren't visible, and it was merely a shimmering mess of red peering from beneath pallid lids.

"What if I said I want sex?" Bakura queried, cocking his head sideways and digging his nails into the comforters. Marik unhinged his jaw, preparing to answer, but Bakura interrupted him. "I mean, not that I'm giving you a choice. I want to fuck. You're going to fuck." Bakura paused to twirl his hand about his wrist. "I think you see my point."

Marik gritted his teeth, and let his breath hiss between the small gaps between them. His tongue flicked the inside of his mouth, and he slowly bobbed his head.

"I understand," Marik replied smoothly, and rolled over, straddling Bakura's waist. The pale man gave a victorious grin, wicked teeth showing as his lips peeled back, and the willowy hands rested softly atop Marik's hips, gripping the Egyptian and pulling them in roughly together.

While Marik had just been thinking of sex and how much they didn't need it earlier, he couldn't deny that he was interested. He and Bakura had refrained due to that being one of their initial reasons for fighting, and one of the reasons why Marik had wanted to move. Of course, as time went on, and Bakura continued to show signs of pregnancy, and Marik had had time to recuperate, he had become more accustomed to the thought of sexual interaction again, and that them having a child was indeed a high probability.

Marik lowered his head down, and pressed his lips to Bakura's, licking along the rim of the soft pink skin, tasting the flavor of Bakura's lips. He noted the different pieces that stuck up, and realized Bakura had been chewing at his lips, and had ripped them apart.

"Quit biting your lips," Marik grumbled, pushing Bakura's chest and lowering the other man down beneath him, watching as Bakura's head thumped against the plush surface, and his hair spread wider, forming what looked like a small blanket atop the blue surface.

"I'll do what I damn well please," Bakura retorted easily, smirking as a hand rose up, brushing softly against Marik's cheek. His fingers trailed the skin, cupping around Marik's chin easily and pulling the blonde roughly down atop, colliding their mouths together. One hand snaked around Marik's waist, and he placed his hand on the small of the blonde's back, before pushing downwards, melting their bodies together.

Marik, however, made a conscious effort to avoid the stomachs touching. If Bakura happened to be pregnant, he certainly wasn't going to jeopardize that, or the man who was carrying the could-be child.

"I suppose this means I'm riding you," Marik remarked cheekily, and cocked his head to the side, staring down into Bakura's widened eyes.

"I suppose that means you are."

-(-o-)-

Marik extracted his body from Bakura's lingering grasp, watching as the man's corpse like arms slid to hit the comforter. A chill attacked Marik's body, and a small shudder worked through his spine as he slowly swung his legs from beneath the thick material, bare feet touching down to the hardwood floors.

Rising up, he reached to the side, and merely grabbed a shirt that happened to be quite large on him, and slid it up his arms, awkwardly working his fingers through it. The fabric hit mid-thigh, and he quickly buttoned a few of the polished pieces up, hiding parts of his chest from the cool breeze, before making his way into the kitchen. He couldn't really be bothered to gather up britches right now.

"Sennen," Marik whispered, edging near the glimmering, golden robot that lay still. Her blank eyes stared straight forward, white pits of lost emotion, not even bothering to register just yet that one of her masters had proceeded before her. "Sennen, I need you to send a message to Bakura's brother," the blonde mumbled, snatching up a quill and paper as he jotted down a phrase. Hoisting the paper before him, he proffered it to the robot.

She reacted instantly, jointed fingers arising to clasp what Marik held, and pulling it into her. Her maid dress rustled with the movement, and she quickly pocketed it, before removing herself from her position, and heading readily to the door.

"Grab some eggs and bread while you're out!" Marik called after her, voice straining to stay a whisper. "I don't need Bakura asking questions." A nod was not given, but Marik knew she would obey, as she always did.

And, before soon, the doctor would be in the house.


	3. Earth and Fire

Marik sucked in a deep breath, letting it out through his nose before shifting his feet. He felt pebbles slide beneath his feet as he pulled his fists inwards to his waist, making them face palm-side up as he continued his steady breathing. Feeling his power rising, he let out one final exhalation, before shoving his fists at an invisible foe.

A large chunk of the Earth erupted from ground, small pebbles dripping from the jagged tips of it. Marik twirled his hand forwards, showing his palm to the rock. He'd been trying to get this trick right for a while now. . .

Tanned fingers slowly curled inwards, lavender eyes narrowing as he willed the rock to break and crumble. Nothing happened though. Marik let out an irritated snarl, releasing the rock and sending it falling back into its natural place. Sighing, he ran a hand through his fluffy blonde hair, feeling sweat blanketing his scalp. Grimacing with disgust, he walked out of the cave that he had been in.

A large boulder sat off to the side, and Marik waved a hand at it, barely even flicking his wrist to send it scuttling across the ground to plug up the evidence of Marik's clearly blatant disregard of the law. Turning away, he set off towards his home.

-(-o-)-

A large, scarlet caravan rambled down the dirt road, sending up clouds behind it as the vehicle ambled along. The horses in front were snorting and rearing from the dirt winding up into their nose, clearly irritated. Not to mention they hadn't stopped to eat in quite a while due to the lack of plant-life. The driver merely cracked the whip harder, urging the horses onwards. Their two squat legs stamped the ground beneath them, large beaks opening to squawk in protest. Another crack of the whip, though, and they pressed their chests harder against their breast-straps.

"We're almost there!" the driver called backwards over his shoulder to the three strange men that were riding within his cart. All of them had startlingly white hair and porcelain-like skin. Despite all odd appearances, they were all dressed in lush red clothes of varying shades along with golden trimmings, giving away their birthplace.

One of the boys was leaning against the other, clearly asleep, whilst the one being leaned on merely narrowed crimson eyes at the driver. The one who the driver assumed was their father merely offered an amiable smile.

"Why, may I ask, are you moving out here? Nothing but those Earth-scum!" The driver craned his neck just a little to stare inwards yet again. The father's brow furrowed, causing an unsightly wrinkle in his once smooth face.

"We just. . . Needed a change in scenery. And either way, we're not going to be mingling with . . . Earthbenders," he seemingly choked on the word. Feeling slight concern, the driver merely watched as a ghostly hand covered its owner's neck. "Sorry. I just. . .Don't like that word." He inclined his head, sending silver threads of hair cascading down in front of his face. His hair was flowing, unlike his sons, whose hair seemed to be made of chunks.

"Well, you don't have to worry about Earthbenders. All of them fled to join a group of rebels. I heard a ton of them killed some citizens of the Fire Nation," the driver chatted, his voice taking a lilting tone, not noticing the narrowed eyes that were locked onto his narrow back. "So, no Earthbenders in this village! Merely the remnants of what the Earth Kingdom used to be. After all, the Fire Nation has them under lock and key now."

"I see," the father replied, an icy tone in his voice.

"A-yup! Oh look! There's even a squad of the scum to help you here!" The driver exclaimed, pointing forwards over top the horses' heads. It was true. There was a small group of green clad people milling about, kicking up dust in what appeared to be a foolish attempt at bending.

"Disgusting," the father hissed as the caravan slid to a halt.

-(-o-)-

Marik glared at the red caravan. Just as any respectable Earth Kingdom citizen should, Marik Ishtar absolutely _loathed_ the Fire Nation. They were despicable dictators who the world would be better without. But yet here he was, someone who could probably out-bend them all, carrying their luggage for them so they could move into their new home.

Sneering, Marik turned to the side and saw his brother, Mariku, kicking up dust, sliding his foot around in it. Rolling his lavender tinted eyes, Marik smacked Mariku roughly on the shoulder, and directed his twin's gaze to the people now exiting the caravan.

First, a rather tall man stepped from the cart, his leather clad feet touching down softly on each and every miniature step. His silver hair was slung behind his back, rippling in the heat of the day as it waggled behind him like some type of flag. Russet eyes glittered as they slid over to Marik, regarding him with a contemptuous look.

Fury boiled up inside of him, blotting out his vision. Seeing red, he had to grit his teeth and clench his hands into fists at the sight of that condescending gaze. More then anything he wanted to will a large chunk of the Earth to slam into that porcelain face. He wanted it to shatter and break into a million pieces and-

Oh great. There was more of them. Two, to be precise. They stepped out behind the silver haired man, almost like little replicas of him. The differences were minor, such as height, and the fact that their hair was truly white. One had his hair neatly combed down, and the other had his fashioned oddly with large wing like protrusions, rising above scarlet eyes.

"You, boy," he eldest one commanded, snapping thin, bony white fingers. Marik bit back the urge to hiss in disgust as he realized he was the one being hailed. He was aware, however, that any little 'show' he decided to put on would land him in serious trouble, and that was something Marik didn't want.

"Yes, sir?" Marik ground out the words that tasted like bile residing on his tongue. If it stayed there any longer he was sure his tongue would begin to burn from the bitter sensations racing along its surface.

"Grab some of our things. Your large look-a-like over there can help, too," the man said, his arm shooting out to point at the caravan. Marik cast his gaze over his shoulder, just to realized that Mariku was already there like a solid green wall behind him.

Marik clambered inside the caravan, gathering some things in his arm. He read the name 'Touzouku' on several labels, and figured that it was the family's surname. Hoisting the bags over his shoulder, his mind was swept up in fantasies where he could just put these on a disc made of Earth, carrying them along behind him as he pranced like a King through the streets.

"Be careful with those, you oaf!" The silver-haired man snapped, glaring pointedly at Mariku. The bigger Ishtar froze, his grip tightening on the bag that he had been preparing to swing over his shoulders. Marik paused as well, realizing that Mariku was probably thinking things he shouldn't have been.

"Mariku," Marik hissed, "behave." With that, the smaller blonde promptly walked to the side of the Head of the Touzouku line. He received another superior look from the man, before he pointed forward. Marik noted with disgust that the man's nails were painted with glittering gold polish. Really, how stupid could you get?

"Follow behind me then," the man said in a deep voice, taking slow steps forward. Marik followed behind him, wishing for the life of him that the stupid, pompous man would pick up his _fucking pace_!

It didn't help that his two sons were slowly making their way up towards their father, taking those slow steps as well. Marik hated people that walked sluggish for no reason. They didn't have to walk amazingly fast, but would it hurt them to go more then .5 miles per hour?

"Who are you people?" Mariku finally snarled. Marik knew he hated silence. The bigger of the Ishtar twins loved to make people squirm, and reveled in verbal abuse, along with physical. Obviously, the lack of response from the Touzoukus really grated on his nerves. And, though he'd never say it, it bugged Marik just a little too.

"I don't see why it matters to you scum, but I suppose I can tell you. I am Kousetsu Touzouku." The silver haired man replied, flipping some of hair over his shoulder. "My childrens' names do not matter to you, so do not even bother asking."

Marik scowled at the Kousetsu's back, and one of his children turned around, narrowing crimson eyes to give Marik a smirk that curled disgustingly at the edges of his mouth, revealing small fangs.

With nostrils flared, Marik wanted more then anything to slam a rock into that arrogant face, and then tap-dance on that stupid male's nuts. He wanted him to feel deep pain just for the fact that he dare look at Marik with that overly stupid face and that he was born a stupid Fire-citizen.

But of course he didn't.

Trudging along behind the three men, he just did his best not to stumble and make an absolute fool of himself. He refused to ever let that happen in front of these Fire-citizens. Vaguely, he wondered if they were benders. Most certainly the father was, but the children were debatable.

Those thoughts didn't matter for the moment, though, and Marik quickly shoved them away. He instead focused on the fact that they were now walking a little faster and uphill towards the large buildings in the front-most part of the Kingdom. All these buildings were shades of red, contrasting greatly with the buildings further inwards, which were all emerald, pea green, and grass green.

This had all happened due to the Fire Nation, in its thirst for power, taking over the Earth Kingdom. Many of the Nation's citizens had moved into the Earth Kingdom, as to further impose their dominance upon the Earth-citizens. Now, everyday when Marik awoke, he was left to stare up at the elaborate crimson houses, disgust in his every vein as he went about, doing his chores like a good boy should.

Finally, they reached the nice garnet home that the Touzouku's would occupy. It was a far-cry from the humble Earth Kingdom homes. Large black spikes protruded from atop the roof, and the sliding doors were decorated with golden lining. Kousetsu ambled up to it, and slid the door open, revealing a flat, empty room that stretched larger then Marik's whole home.

Stepping across golden floors, Marik and Mariku made their way into the home, purposefully leaving their shoes on and dragging mud across the nice floors. They could hear irritated noises coming from the Touzoukus, but the Ishtar twins merely shared satisfied smirks.

"Just drop the bags and leave," Kousetsu commanded, turning to his sons as he said so. Marik scowled at the three of them, letting them all know his deep-set hatred for them, before excusing himself with a final bow from their home. Mariku just trotted out, blonde hair wagging crazily on the top of his head.

Returning to their own modest home, Marik realized just how annoying these Fire Nation scum were. Here they were, busting their asses and living in small homes, whereas the Fire Nation's citizens came to _their Kingdom_and either lounged about, or did nothing outside of Firebending. It was like they were openly mocking the Earth Kingdom's people! 'Look, we can bend and you can't!' it seemed to screech.

Growling in frustration, Marik stripped down to only his undergarments, before sliding into his shared bed with Mariku. Gods, how he hated those fire-loving scum!

-(-o-)-

Bakura Touzouku sat in the main room of their home. It was the day after they had moved in, and they had successfully set up their belongings. Not that they'd brought much, anyways. Plenty of it had been destroyed (along with their old home) when the rebels had attacked.

A wave of hatred washed through him, and Bakura gritted his teeth. Those stupid rebels had killed his mother and sister, murdering pretty much all of what he loved. All except for one identical boy that was watching Bakura over the top of his tea-cup.

"Bakura. . . Maybe you should go out for a walk. It could make you feel better," Ryou mumbled, his soft hair laying immaculately across his forehead in glimmering white. Bakura could see that he was trembling slightly, though, and the elder of the twins let out an irritated sigh.

"It's fine, Ryou," Bakura grumbled, yet he still felt himself rising slowly to his feet. A walk wouldn't hurt him, would it? All in all, he supposed he could just travel along to a place where there would be none of the denizens of the Earth Kingdom milling about like the cows they were.

Slipping on his soft, pointed shoes, Bakura left their home, not even bothering to tell their father. Ryou could handle that, and Bakura didn't like speaking to his father anyways. So instead, he just set off down a path, black britches swishing beneath his red tunic. His long white hair stuck about in its usual spikes, but for once he was wearing the traditional flame shaped, two-pronged ornament between his spikes. He refused, however, to wrap his hair up in it. Even his father and Ryou rarely partook in that tradition.

It was because of their mother, he knew. She loved the color of all their hair, so she chose to let it hang down loosely. Yes, Yuki Touzouku had loved her soft white hair, along with her childrens' and husband's, so soon they all adopted that same mentality.

Shoving those raw thoughts away, Bakura realized that he'd completely skirted the living sections of the Earth Kingdom citizens. Interesting. Not that he was complaining, of course. Being away from those idiots was best for his temper. Speaking of, he could feel flames burning in his palm, etching to be let loose. He supposed it wouldn't hurt to do some training.

Now just to find a spot free of spectators.

He found his spot, soon enough. He was in a large clearing, the grass swaying and bending to the crooning of the wind in its hidden ears. Several birds could be heard chattering in the surrounding trees, seemingly telling Bakura to stop here and practice.

However, being a Firebender and all, practicing within a grass riddled meadow with fluttering leaves all about was probably not the best idea.

But that wasn't the place Bakura had found.

In said clearing, there was a large cave. A stone had been rolled to the side, allowing access. It would be the perfect place to practice his Firebending. He seriously doubted anybody would just randomly go into a cave, and there was nothing flammable within.

So with a final, definite nod, Bakura entered the cave. The light from outside extended further in, revealing quite the bit of the cave. It wasn't exactly large to begin with. Casting his crimson gaze around, Bakura froze as he heard a scuffle, and a noise like a pebble dropping.

"Who's there?" Bakura demanded, his voice deep and growling as he waved a hand, a small burning flame forming in his palm. The flickering light from the fire extended past what the natural light showed, and revealed a certain familiar, green clothed blonde sitting at the back of the cave.

A rock poised just in front of his hand.

-(-o-)-

**So, uh, request for LadySunami. I hope I did it okay, or along the lines of what you were thinking. And as for anybody else that's reading this, if you're confused, all will be explained.**

**I probably messed up loads in this, but something that helped me was Avatar-Wiki. I read up a little bit there, and it gave actual in-depth details, though certain things in the series Avatar don't exist like they do in this fic, merely because it's at a different time(for example, the Earth Kingdom Lord) and I know the Fire Nation is incredibly industrialized so they wouldn't really be in a caravan I don't think, but it just worked better then a ship.**

**So um review would be loved! Loved loved loved. (Btw, is this supposed to go under crossover or not?)**

**See ya!**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 2: Chapter 2: Attack of the Gorilla Goat<strong>**

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><p>Bakura felt a rock collide with the side of his face, finally spurring him into action. Jumping forward, his fist shot out before his face, sending spiraling flames shooting forwards towards his blonde adversary. A small cry was heard, and Bakura smirked in triumph.<p>

His victory was short lived, however, as he slammed into a wall of earth that hadn't been their moments before. Cursing himself and his luck, Bakura stumbled back, clutching at his nose and thanking his lucky stars that it wasn't broken or bleeding.

Lurching around the wall, Bakura sucked in a deep breath, his diaphragm swelling with the air that filled his lungs. Exhaling sharply, flames spurted from his lips, shooting forward and curling around the blonde figure, lapping at the boy's feet.

With another screech, the blonde rocketed out into the light of day, and Bakura made haste after him. There was no way in hell he was letting this boy go! Shooting out after him, Bakura felt another chunk of earth crush into his face. Hissing, Bakura threw away all the tactics he knew and just tackled the boy.

In a blur of green, blonde and brown, the two teens tumbled to the ground, sprawling out in the dirt. Bakura let out an annoyed hiss, and pressed his knees into the child beneath him's chest, pinning the blonde there. Violet eyes glared daggers up at him, but Bakura payed him no heed, and just reached back, grabbing the boy's feet, lifting them up and separating them from the ground, cutting off his powers.

Bakura sneered, and glared down at the boy. "Disgusting little Earthbender. . . I ought to break your legs, just to hear you scream," Bakura hissed, bending the blonde's legs backwards, a smirk spreading over his features at the boy's face twisted in pain.

Bakura let them return to a more comfortable position, though, and just smirked at his captive. Lavender eyes glared through narrow slits, before rolling to the edges of his eye. The albino frowned, wondering why the others attention had changed.

"Oh shit oh shit oh shit," the blonde gasped, and didn't turn towards Bakura's obvious, questioning gaze. The tanned boy beneath him started bucking, hissing and fighting, though, until a large, low growl was heard.

Both boys froze.

-(-o-)-

Marik was immobilized, and couldn't bend. This Firebending idiot wasn't moving either, apparently. The white haired Touzouku merely stared in wonder at the large, white beast now crashing through the woods, getting ever closer to them. Marik made another strangled noise, and continued to struggle.

And then it was in the clearing with them.

The large creature loomed over them, protruding fangs curved upwards, glistening in the wicked sunlight, given a bigger sheen by the sheer amount of spittle sliding from base to tip, just to fall lightly back onto dark gums. The creature's horns and ears both stuck out from his head, just as long as its cruel fangs.

Big, beefy arms flexed corded muscles as it scowled down at them, green eyes glittering from its black face. Snuffling noises came from its scrunched up nose, and its back hooves scraped the ground as it stared at the boys, sizing them.

Marik blanched as he realized that the monster had deemed them worthy of its wrath.

"Move you idiot!" Marik barked up at the albino straddling him, and bucked his hips harder then before, successfully knocking the Firebender from his lap. Rising to his feet, Marik saw the beast snort in an angry way, realizing that its prey was thinking of escaping.

Tanned hands flashed out, shoving the albino into motion, running right behind him as they made a mad-dash for the village. A loud bellow was heard from behind them, and Marik could hear the pounding footsteps of the monster.

With a growl, Marik turned, running backwards as he did so. His subconscious picked up on the fact that the Firebender didn't even stop to see if anything was okay; just kept running. But Marik supposed that didn't really matter. Instead, he focused on the task at hand.

Facing the beast, he saw that it was gaining on them, and he just thanked the heavens that they had a head start. Of course, that wasn't going to do them much good unless Marik acted on his idea.

Marik's hand arched down, and then rose savagely up once more, a large rock wall forming before him, just to slowly curve backwards to the lumbering beast. Marik winced as he heard a thud, and some more bellowing, and then he knew he had successfully captured the beast within a rock tomb.

Turning back around, he resumed running, eventually catching up with the gasping Firebender. However, once the whittete had realized that the animal was no longer coming after them, he ground to a halt, and Marik found himself stopping beside him.

Marik wanted to know what was going to become of him.

-(-o-)-

Bakura's hands clenched into fists as he glared angrily at the blonde before him. On the outside, he remained the picture of calm, but on the inside he was burning from rage and embarrassment. Some stupid Earthbender had saved him! _Him!_ He was fucking Bakura Touzouku! Nobody saved him, and especially not somebody he hated!

"What was that thing?" Bakura dead-panned, eyes flickering for the briefest of moments towards where they had come from. The blonde blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting this.

"Well. . . It was a Gorilla Goat," the Earthbender replied, nodding slightly so his blonde bangs bounced around his tanned face. Bakura sneered. Who gave a fuck if he was a strange one among his people, like Bakura?

"Interesting. . . And your name, Earthbender?" Bakura sneered, crossing his arms across his chest. The Earthbender looked clearly reluctant to divulge such information, and even went so far as to stubbornly look away from Bakura.

Growling with frustration, Bakura's hand lashed out, grasping the front of blonde's green, sleeveless tunic. He lifted the boy up, and slammed his back into a nearby tree. He heard the boy make a strangled cry, and the lavender eyes screwed shut in pain.

"It's just a tree, you pussy," Bakura hissed, voice showing a colorfully condescending way of talking. Vaguely, Bakura was aware that he probably sounded something akin to his father, but that thought irritated him, and he quickly brushed it away.

"Shut up," the blonde spat, waving a hand, causing the earth to rise up around Bakura's feet, trapping them in a sort of holding cell. Bakura snarled in frustration, and shot a fire ball at the blonde.

"Tell me now, and release me, you filthy, disgusting scum!" Bakura snarled, white, bony hands reaching out, grasping reaching for the green tunic that was flashing tantalizingly out of reach. Feeling even more anger roiling up inside of his gut, Bakura blew a stream of fire from his mouth, directing it towards the aggravating boy.

The blonde merely _tsk_-ed, and moved out of range. "If I release you, you can't tell that I'm an Earthbender." Bakura growled threateningly. But when the blonde started to move away, Bakura called him back, a defeated look in his eyes.

"I won't bloody tell," Bakura finally said, crimson eyes boring into the blonde's lavender eyes. Seemingly satisfied, the Earthbender waved a hand, coaxing the earth back into its natural position.

"I'm Marik, by the way," the blonde said in a nonchalant voice, before he was grabbed roughly, arms pinned to his sides, and his face smashed into fluffy white hair as Bakura held the boy tight. There was no way Bakura was going down in any way, shape, or form. If he had to lose this miniature spat, then fine. He'd get something out of it.

"All right then, Marik, you're pretty stupid if you thought you were going to walk out of this scot-free," Bakura snarled, holding Marik in a vice-grip. The blonde immediately began struggling, but yet again Bakura had out-smarted the Earthbender by holding him captive.

"What do you want then, huh? To turn me in, you Firebending scum!" Marik spat, and Bakura sneered at him.

"No. If anything, we Firebenders are loyal and true to our word. I said I wouldn't turn you in, and that's fine. But I never said that held out forever. So, here's what we'll do. You be my personal little slave, and I won't tell." Bakura smirked. This was probably his most brilliant idea yet, and he could already feel the Earthbender struggling even more frantically, attempting to get loose.

He could feel Marik slowly calming down though, and knew that now the boy was trapped. A malicious grin spread across his features; it widened even more as he saw that Marik had finally stopped moving. Shoving the boy away, but keeping his pale hands clasped around Marik's shoulders, Bakura narrowed ruby eyes at the blonde boy.

"Are we understood, then?" Bakura questioned, already knowing good and well that Marik had no choice.

"Understood."

-(-o-)-

**THIS FUCKING CHAPTER! Four one-shots, pretty much just to avoid working on this. And it's so short, cuz (thanks to LadySunami) there's actually going to be a plot happenin'. Oh~. Just not in this chapter, cuz it has no way of really fitting. . .**

**Now some minor things: Instead of going back and editing, just know that in last chapter, I said that they walked to the edge of the "Kingdom" or something like that. That part was incorrect. To better explain, Marik's village is pretty much owned by the Fire Nation, and they're basically slaves, who are not allowed to Earth-bend(that'll be covered more later). Also, just completely ignore last chapters Author Note. Ohoho~.**

**Ugh. Sorry for the really late, short update. Fuuuu- anyways.**

**See ya!**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Most High and Honorable Self<strong>**

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><p>"Marik, wake up please," a soft, melodic voice drifted towards Marik awakening him from his slumber as he dug his way from underneath the veils of the dream-world. Finally surfacing, he rubbed at his eyes, a yawn cracking his jaw along with a stretch. Shifting a little beneath his covers, he looked to the side and saw that Mariku was still asleep.<p>

"What is it, Ishizu?" Marik grumbled, not really caring if Mariku awoke or not. Instead, he focused on the sleek, black haired figure that was now peering into the room. The hair belonged to a woman with tanned skin, just a bit darker then Marik's, and shining blue eyes that beseech-ed him to hurry up.

Sighing out of frustration, Marik rose up and walked to Ishizu Ishtar, his elder sister. She placed a tentative hand on his shoulder, and frowned down at his attire. He hadn't really felt like getting dressed, so he was just wearing his pants. One of his tunics was thrown on the other side of the room, but he saw no point in retrieving it.

With a heavy sigh, Ishizu fidgeted, and looked back towards their door. "Put your tunic on, Marik," Ishizu commanded, and Marik obeyed with a roll of his eyes. When that was done, Ishizu fidgeted with his messy hair a bit, then hurried back to the door, creme colored dress swishing about her ankles.

Another yawn escaped from Marik's mouth, and he closed his eyes as he let another delicious stretch ripple through his body. Opening his eyes, however, he was incredibly disappointed to see a certain albino standing there, a smirk ripping his face, revealing sharp canines.

"This Fire citizen wished to speak with you, Marik," Ishizu explained in a small voice. There was a hint of hardness about it, and Marik knew why. But, now wasn't the time for that sort of thing, seeing as that stupid ass Bakura was standing in his house!

"Yes, Marik," Bakura said viciously, amusement shimmering in his crimson eyes, "I wish to speak with you. Now, come," a pale finger twitched, before its owner disappeared outside. Marik moved to, grudgingly, follow, but he was stopped by Ishizu's hand plucking at the back of his tunic. Marik turned slowly to face her.

"Marik, what did you do?" Ishizu pleaded, obvious worry in her expression. Marik felt slightly saddened by that look, but quickly brushed it away. He knew he was nothing like the rest of his family's benders, and he would not follow in their paths. Well, not if he did as Bakura commanded, anyhow.

"I've done nothing," Marik stated shortly, and then stepped out of the house. He could feel Ishizu's eyes burning holes into his shoulder blades, but right now he couldn't be bothered to care. No, no, now he was focusing on that stupid fucking Bakura.

Sliding the door to his home shut behind him, Marik focused his lavender gaze on Bakura, hoping to let the albino know the depths of his dislike for said-figure. The Firebender showed no signs of caring, however, and instead looked at his nails.

"What do you want?" Marik demanded, voice taking on a growling tone. Bakura's eyes glimmered dangerously, before slowly turning to Marik, a wide grin stretching at his cheeks and giving Marik a full view of the different canines inhabiting his mouth.

"Simple. From now on, instead of doing chores, you shall accompany my high and honorable self**(1)**." Bakura pointed at himself, fingers splaying across his chest as he grinned, eyes lighting up.

Marik just rolled his eyes. "Charmed, you can tell," the blonde responded drily. Bakura's eyes snapped to him, and one hand reached out, roughly grabbing Marik by his hair, pulling the boy in close.

"You should be on your knees thanking me for this precious gift," Bakura hissed into Marik's ear, and the blonde had to resist the urge to spit at Bakura and kick him in the nuts. But he knew he wouldn't. Or, more-so, couldn't. Ever since the Fire Nation had taken over, Earthbenders had been eradicated in certain parts of the Earth Kingdom, since the Fire Nation didn't want anybody rising up against them. If an Earthbender was discovered, they were shipped off to a metal vessel in the ocean. And Marik, of course, had no desire what-so-ever to go there.

So, yes, Marik supposed he should've been thanking Bakura for this. But Marik was a proud child, if nothing else, and he certainly was never going to thank a Firebending scum! Especially not one that was like Bakura!

"Release me," Marik commanded, his own voice dropping deep and low. Bakura merely gave a haughty laugh, tugged at Marik's hair one final time, before letting his fingers be freed from the golden mess. Taking a step back, Marik's eyes narrowed at Bakura, clearly waiting for instructions.

"Good, good," Bakura purred, "I like silent, obedient pets." Marik hissed, but Bakura disregarded him with a wave of his hand. "Well, today my father has asked my brother and I to bring equipment into the training area, where he's dealing with new recruits." Bakura's grin widened, and Marik could already tell where this was going.

"And well, Marik, my soft, sweet little brother just can't handle carrying things, or being around those scary Firebenders. So, you and I will be taking care of that today," Bakura finished, turning on his heel and heading towards the training grounds.

Marik didn't follow immediately. He had to admit, he was slightly shocked. Initially, he had figured that Bakura would be a complete dick and pile all the work onto Marik, but now he had been completely and utterly proven wrong.

With a small snort of amusement, Marik ran to keep up with Bakura, soft shoes making small noises against the street. When he finally did catch up with Bakura, and began walking side-by-side with his crimson wearing master, he realized that they were receiving odd looks.

"What a strange pair we make, eh?" Marik commented. He wasn't really one for conversation, but he supposed it wouldn't hurt to at least talk to Bakura, since apparently they'd be seeing much of each other.

Bakura merely arched a silver eyebrow, and smirked in reply. "Does it bother you, Marik? Being seen with a Firebender?"

Marik shrugged. "I don't care for you scum. Actually, I want to gut you and burn your innards. I think I'd even sit and watch as soon as I found something to plug my nose from the stench." The blonde assumed that his Firebending companion would snap at him, or possibly tell him off for saying such things.

But, as it was, it came as a huge surprise when Bakura's head tilted back and a hearty laugh erupted from his throat, truly unsettling Marik. Was this Firebender sneaking drugs or something? Perhaps he just had a mental problem.

"Ah, Ishtar, you might not be as bad as you seem. Well, when your panties aren't all up in a bunch, anyways," Bakura smirked over his shoulder, clearly triumphant at seeing Marik's enraged face.

"Bakura!" A voice interrupted Marik before he could argue. Turning slightly, he saw Bakura's brother running towards them, pale hand waving over top his fluffy, streaming white hair. He looked delighted to see his brother, before his eyes fell on Marik, and they widened out of fear as he ground to a halt.

With a small scream, the whittete darted behind his brother, clutching at the scarlet tunic belonging to Bakura. The albino rolled his eyes, arms crossing over his chest as he glared down at his smaller twin.

"Honestly. Grow up a little, Ryou," Bakura barked, brushing past his brother. Marik really was confused, at this point. He and Marik were going to do all this work _for Ryou_, just for Bakura to turn around and be an ass to him? How the heck did that make sense?

The one now known as Ryou merely made a panicky noise as he looked at Marik, before shooting off towards the opposite way of the training fields. Marik could only arch an eyebrow, before following up behind Bakura.

"I thought you liked your brother?" Marik questioned, his voice holding a slight sense of apathy. Bakura only offered a shrug.

"What made you think that?"

"Well, you're doing all this work for him," Marik replied, frustration barely sneaking into his voice. He quickly snuffed it, though, not wanting to sound snappy. After all, as much as he hated it, Bakura was the one in control of all this mess.

"That eel-hound won't run," Bakura replied with a shrug of his shoulders. Marik just scowled at him.

"How so?"

"I don't need to explain myself," the albino snapped, "and anyways, we're here all ready." And it was true. The training grounds was merely a large field that stretched for a pretty good of the ways out. At the moment, it was empty, but Marik could see, off to the side, that there was a caravan filled with different poles, hoops, and other target like things.

"Well, slave, get to walking," Bakura commanded, making his own way across the field. Marik grumbled in response, but followed behind, scooping up a pole. He felt something prod his backside, however, and abruptly turned around, just to see an innocently whistling Bakura.

Scowling, Marik grabbed a stick, and whacked Bakura's shoulder with it, before making his way towards the field again, preparing to shove the stick into the ground. He felt another blow to his head, though, and abruptly turned around, spotting a glaring Bakura.

"You look meaner then an Armadillo Wolf!" Marik laughed, and Bakura just smirked.

"Oh I'm not angry, dear slave, I'm merely showing you not to fuck with me." The albino's shoulders shrugged, but Marik just retrieved his stick and swung at Bakura's stomach, causing the albino to flinch and pull back.

Now it was Marik's turn to smirk, which turned into a grin, and from then on morphed into a laugh. If he paused to think about it, Marik would've realized it was quite miraculous that he was laughing at something to do with a Firebender. Before any of this, he would've thought it about as impossible as Sozin Waterbending!

Bakura's lips wriggled for a minute, before he too started laughing, hitting Marik again with the stick. An all out war erupted, painful blows being dealt from all sides, and both calling things out to each other that, later, they wouldn't even remember.

And it continued on, until a loud, obnoxious noise chose to break through their fun,**(2)** causing them both to freeze, clutching their sticks in their hands as they turned confused gazes towards the large group that had somehow magically appeared around them. Marik stared forward, and realized that it was a boy about their age who had made the noise.

"The hell do you faggots think you're doing?" The boy demanded, a sneer tugging at his features as he glared down at them. Bakura scowled, and rose to his full height, though he was still much shorter then the boy glaring down at them.

"What does it look like we're doing?" Bakura demanded, anger clear in his tone. Marik kept quiet, hands clenched around the stick as he fought the temptation to just whack the boy hard with it. Or possibly summon up some Earth to beat him mercilessly with.

"It looks like you were cutting a rug, eh?" The boy laughed. "Tell me; does your little shemale got good moves?" Marik realized that it was him being referred to, and he had to clamp his teeth down on his tongue to hold his words in check.

Bakura's eyes just rolled, before offering a smirk. "Just jealous you couldn't get him while he was in stock?" Marik scowled at Bakura, and rewarded the albino with a vicious attack from the stick. "Bitch!" Bakura barked, and the boy across from them cackled.

"At least I'm not knee-high to a cabbage slug!" the boy smirked, and Marik saw Bakura's face turn slightly red. So Bakura was sensitive about his height? Marik quickly filed away that information for later uses. . .

"Shut up, you annoying little-"

"Bakura, Hirutani, behave yourselves," a silky voice came from behind the crowd of boys, who all turned abruptly from their free entertainment to face none other the Bakura's father, Kousetsu Touzouku.

"M-Master Touzouku!" Hirutani mumbled, sinking to one knee in a slight bow. Bakura just snorted, and turned his back on his father.

"Bakura," Kousetsu chided, gliding even closer to his son. Marik felt uneasy around this man, for some reason. He just. . . Seemed to flow to easily, and move as if he was made of liquid. It wasn't natural to be so easy and flowing!

"I thought I told you and Ryou to set all this up for me this morning?" Kousetsu questioned, silvery hair falling around his pale face as he bent over ever-so-slightly to stare at Bakura's glaring face.

"Well, Ryou doesn't like being around. . . Benders, so I have my personal little slave here," he looked at Marik, "helping me out." Bakura finished, and narrowed his eyes at his father, who merely leaned back and studied Marik, obvious distaste on his pale face.

"Whatever. Since you can't focus with your little pet around, I'm going to have Hirutani watch him while the rest of us set up equipment. You truly disappoint me today, Bakura," Kousetsu said, before snapping his fingers, making the other boys snap to life. Bakura just gnashed his teeth and looked to Marik.

"You heard him! Go sit with that oaf!" Bakura growled, turning on his heel to go finish putting up equipment. And, just like that, Hirutani was right next to Marik, one large hand coming down to grip his shoulder in a gruff way.

"I'm not going to run away," Marik spat, pulling out of Hirutani's grip. The larger blonde merely sneered down at Marik, his lips curling in disgust. Marik felt his anger boiling up. What the hell was with all these Fire Nation bastards acting like they were _sooo_ much better! Marik could out-bend half these dumb asses-easy!

Hirutani said nothing for a while, until a timid Ryou appeared on the scene. Marik spotted him first, and could see that, by the look on Ryou's face, he wasn't keen to be there. It was then that Marik noticed Kousetsu behind him, obviously making the whittete join the other boys.

A smirk spread over Hirutani's face as Kousetsu finally left Ryou's side, and the the large boy immediately grabbed Marik's hand and dragged him across the field. Marik tried to escape the crushing grasp, but was unsuccessful, and was left staring at a terrified Ryou's face as they slowly drew in closer.

"Hey, faggot," Hirutani barked, pushing roughly at Ryou with his free hand. The small, white haired boy squeaked, and shivered slightly, gaze cast down and away from Hirutani. The bully didn't like that, however, and grabbed Ryou's chin, forcing him to look upwards.

"Please, let me go," Ryou whispered pathetically, but Hirutani didn't listen, and merely tightened the pressure.

"Your brother pissed me off, eh? Why should I?" Hirutani demanded, jiggling his hand a little, causing Ryou's face to shake and his wide, fearful, glistening eyes to widen considerably. Marik could only presume it was from fear. Scowling upwards, he didn't even think before lifting his leg up, delivering a sharp kick to Hirutani's crotch.

The bully tumbled to his knees, releasing Ryou. With a sharp cry of relief, the whittete stumbled away from his blonde adversary, and slowly made his way to Marik. Obviously, whatever fear he had of Marik had quickly dissipated upon Marik turning out to be his savior.

"You bitch!" Hirutani groaned, face pressed into the grass. "Who the hell kicked me?" Marik smirked. So the blonde hadn't guessed who had delivered that painful blow? That made it all the better for Marik. . .

"It was me," a sharp, accented voice said, and Hirutani lifted his gaze to see Bakura standing there now, one hand clasped onto Ryou's shoulder, the other poised on his hip as he glared down at the bully.

"Fucker," Hirutani hissed, rising to his feet. Marik's gaze shifted to Bakura, clearly questioning.

"I'm the fucker?" Bakura growled in a deep voice. "Now, it's quite easy to tell you're not exactly a tom-cat's kitten, but to see that you're actually so insecure as to attack my brother?" Another snarl erupted from between bared canines. "You must really want me to whip your ass."

Hirutani gave out a derisive laugh. "As if you could handle me! The one who taught Master Touzouku taught me as well, and even gave me private sessions! You probably can't even land a scratch on me!

Bakura rolled his eyes. "Your training means nothing to me. Regardless of who over-saw it, I can still kick your ass anytime, anywhere!"

"Then step on up boys," Kousetsu said, surprising Marik by coming up behind him. DAMN this Firebenders! Why could Marik never notice them coming? Seriously! And on top of that, Marik was still pretty miffed about being called someone's 'property'. He didn't have much more time to dwell on it, though, since he could see that Bakura and Hirutani were making their way to the center of the field, both wearing confident smirks as they glared at each other.

Marik rolled his eyes. Typical alpha-male behavior. They thought they were the bee's knees, when really they were about as useless as tits on a Gemsbock Bull. It always amused Marik, though, when all the self-confidence they had went shooting down the drain as they realized that it wasn't all about them.

And now, that was about to happen to one of the two boys standing in the middle of the field. Marik stuck close to Ryou as they made their way over, watching as both boys removed their tunics, shifting their feet into better fighting stances.

"Let the fight, begin," Kousetsu called.

-(-o-)-

Bakura lurched forward, fists pumping at the air so as to let fire shoot forwards. He could hear a startled cry from Hirutani, and knew that, in the least bit, he had singed some part of the boy. With a confident smirk, Bakura dropped to his knees, swiping a leg out and letting flames shoot from the soles of his feet, successfully burning Hirutani's knees.

Rising up again, Bakura gaze scanned the crowd momentarily, and he could feel Marik's gaze on him. Seeing the slightly shocked, and quite awed expression on Marik's face, he received yet another ego-stroke, knowing that Marik thought he was a good bender.

The albino was abruptly dragged from his thoughts, however, as Hirutani recovered, and shout out a stream of fire from his mouth. Bakura merely smirked and raised his hands before his face, making them into an X of types. As soon as the fire neared his fore-arms, he channeled it backwards, sending it spiraling down harmlessly to the ground.

Hirutani's face twisted into an ugly grimace as he realized his attack had failed. Bakura didn't give him much more time to think, however, as he formed a long whip of fire that extended from his fore-and middle finger. With a savage grin, Bakura pulled it back, before lashing out at Hirutani, whipping the boy across the face.

He saw the bully's head snap to the side, before his body crumpled to the ground. Bakura could see small tears forming in Hirutani's eyes from the pain he must've been feeling. With a successful smirk, Bakura reeled his whip back, and proceeded to tan the bully's hide.

He could hear sharp cries of pain and agony bursting from Hirutani's lips, but Kousetsu hadn't stopped him yet.

-(-o-)-

Marik watched, slightly fascinated, as Bakura sent flames out in different directions, before eventually forming the flaming whip. He watched as it licked angrily at Hirutani's back, and painful memories burst into Marik's mind, but he quickly snuffed them out.

This was completely different.

Hirutani deserved it, and Marik found a grin working its way over his face as he saw blisters beginning to form in whelps along Hirutani's back. When his whole back had been covered, Kousetsu finally ended the match.

Bakura retracted his whip, making it disappear with a wave of his hand. Grinning, he walked over to Marik and Ryou, eyebrows waggling as he looked at both of them in turn.

"My most high and honorable self has protected you lovely maidens' reputations. You may fall at my feet and thank me as you please," Bakura stated in a haughty voice, flipping his hair over his shoulder. Ryou let out a little squeak, and hugged Bakura.

"Thanks, brother," Ryou mumbled, before taking a step back, and giving a hesitant gaze to Marik. "And. . . Thank-you," with that, the whittete quickly ambled away. Bakura then focused back on Marik, which the blonde was not pleased about at all.

"Well, slave. I said fall at my feet," Bakura smirked, on edge of his mouth curling in a demonic way. Marik stared at him incredulously, before realizing that Bakura wasn't joking. With an annoyed hiss, Marik dropped to his knees, glaring angrily up at Bakura.

"I ought a bite your dick off while I'm down here," Marik snarled, lavender eyes burning with anger.

Bakura merely offered a shrug. "If you're into that sort of thing," the albino cackled, whereas Marik just rolled his eyes and rose to his feet.

"I guess I should be thanking you for protecting me, huh?" Marik said, not quite offering the thanks, and more-so talking to himself. Bakura seemed to register this, but couldn't help speaking up anyways. Marik wondered if Bakura could ever make himself refrain from stupid comments.

"That would be very lovely of you," Bakura drawled, his tongue flickering out to lap at his canines. Marik just curled his lips back in disgust, before crossing his arms and shifting his attention to Hirutani.

The bully was being helped to his feet by several of his friends, all of them attempting to not touch his burns and failing miserably.

"Bakura, you little fuck!" Hirutani screeched. "I'll get you back for this! You and your little shemale, too!"

"Oh, he's just hot air," Bakura snorted, grinning at his little joke. Marik, however, was not convinced. There had been flames of anger, desperation, and over-all drive in Hirutani's eyes.

Marik recognized those flames from when his own father had been consumed by emotions.

Those same flames which had extinguished in the blink of an eye. . .

-(-o-)-

**(1)- I always imagine English-Bakura, so he wouldn't really be saying 'ore-sama', but it's always fun to make him a pompous bastard.**

**(2)- By the way, you can have fun with someone you absolutley hate like that. That's how I have one of my best friends today. We used to hate each other, until we got into a fight using Jenga blocks. . . ^ _ ^ ; Ehe.**

**And seriously, if you like this story so far, thank LadySunami, cuz without her this would be a plotless mess, because I'm a lazy fu~ck. Plus, damn these fight scenes! xD They keep me busier then a long-tailed cat in a room filled with rocking chairs, they do!  
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**So, either way: Questions, comments, or concerns?**

**Put them in reviews, because reviews are lovely and ama~zing.**

**(Btw, every-time I typed 'whip' or 'whipped', I kept grinning and a laughing because of Hank in YGOTAS. Those words can never be serious again. Even when my mom's talking about switchin' me, I have to bite down on my cheek not to laugh! XD)**

**~EDIT~**

**Fixed some junk. Yay~  
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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 4: Chapter 4: Kitty Balls<strong>**

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><p>Marik groaned as he felt something sharp prod at his side, and curled inwards, twisting his blanket about his thighs as he attempted to delve deeper into the world of sleep that was beckoning at him.<p>

"Oh, I want it," Marik mumbled, referring to the comfort of sleep. He heard a roaring laugh off to the side, however, and became startled. It wasn't Mariku's laugh, and certainly Ishizu had never made such a deep, booming cackle. Lifting his gaze unsteadily, Marik was met with a completely unwelcome surprise for the morning.

"What the hell are you doing in my house?" Marik demanded, scrambling up into the sitting position and glaring angrily at the smirking Bakura Touzouku. Face flushed, Marik tugged at his sleep wear, pushing it down to cover his exposed legs.

"Oh shut up, slave," Bakura replied through grinning canines. The albino was clearly enjoying this, seeing how his crimson eyes were sparking with absolute amusement. The blonde, however, was clearly unamused, and his flat expression clearly spoke volumes.

"Why did Ishizu even let you in?" Marik grumbled, rubbing at his head, trying to flatten out his disheveled hair. Bakura just rolled his eyes, and rocked back onto his heels, flickering his gaze to the door.

"Your sister isn't even here. Nor is that strange brother of yours," Bakura replied, crossing his arms over his chest. "And even if either of them were here, I've been walking you home for the past week, I believe they know my face by now."

Bakura smirked, and Marik wished that he could wipe that arrogant look from that pale, skeletal face. But no. Bakura, Marik had learned, would take snarkiness and sarcasm; even relish in it, it seemed! When it came to physical defiance, however, Marik really didn't want to push his luck. He'd seen the albino's fight with Hirutani, and he knew that he never wanted to have to fight against Bakura.

"All right then. . . . What do you want? For me to clean out your house, again?" Marik inquired, propping an arm up on his knee as he gave Bakura a withering look. After all, it'd been stupid little tasks like that which Bakura had been making Marik do this past week.

"I want you to cook for me," Bakura dead-panned, rising up from his crouched position to stare down at Marik. A blonde brow quirked as Marik rose up as well, staring down at Bakura. The albino shuffled for a minute, before kicking Marik in the shin.

"Ow! What the hell?" Marik demanded, crouching down to wrap his hands around the bruised skin. Looking upwards though, he saw Bakura's self-satisfied expression, and realized that Marik had offended the prideful, white-haired teen.

"Now, as I was saying. I want you to make me breakfast," Bakura said, smirking as he stared at Marik below him. The blonde pulled back his lips and snarled at Bakura, before rising once more to his full height.

"Bastard. Anyhow. . . I thought Ryou made you breakfast!" Marik grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared down into burning crimson eyes. Bakura snorted, and turned his head away, nose shoving at the air as he attempted to scrape together his dignity.

"Ryou happens to be sick, and refused to cook for me. And since you're so damned curious, that happens to be where your brother Mariku is. My father requested that oaf watch over my 'poor, delicate brother' for the day." Bakura huffed, and let out a small sniff. "Your stupid brother shouldn't be allowed anywhere near someone like Ryou, though."

"I must agree," Marik chuckled, causing Bakura to look at him with something similar to trepidation. "My brother is . . . A psychotic fuck, for lack of better words." Marik smirked, before turning away from Bakura, and heading towards their kitchen. The albino followed, still showing signs of surprise.

"What're you doing?" Bakura demanded as they reached the kitchen. Marik turned around and glared at him.

"I'm doing what you asked. Making you breakfast. I'm surprised you can't cook for yourself," Marik replied drily, pulling out a pot and tofu. Bakura regarded both items curiously, before shuffling forward.

"What the hell is that?"

"Tofu," Marik replied, pulling off a piece and mashing it into the shape he desired. With a smirk, he looked over at Bakura, and began molding the white piece of food. Bakura watched, leaning against a counter-top as Marik's fingers slowly brought out a shape.

"Kitty," Marik explained, holding up the tofu now shaped like a cat's face. He leveled it next to Bakura's face, and grinned. "Just like you."

"I'm not a damned cat!" Bakura spat. "And what's so special about cooking, may I ask? That looked easy enough!" Marik could tell that Bakura was just trying to stroke his own ego, and repair his damaged pride. With a smirk, Marik decided that he'd at least humor the albino.

"All right, impress me," Marik goaded, setting down his kitten-tofu and letting his hands flutter in the air. Bakura blinked, before nodding savagely, and reaching for the tofu. "Wait!" Marik interrupted, seeing yet another way to screw around with his 'master'.

"What?" Bakura hissed, turning around to glare at Marik. The blonde ignored that, though, and stepped forward, reaching around Bakura's shoulders to fist his hands into Bakura's hair, pulling back each individual piece, attempting to form a nice pony-tail.

-(-o-)-

Bakura glared angrily at Marik's chest, feeling the boy's bronzed fingers running through his strands of hair. He himself didn't much care for having his hair tied back, due to his mother. But he was sure Yuki Touzouku wouldn't mind this time. . . .

Bakura frowned as he realized he sort of liked Marik's hands in his hair, and the way Marik's chest was landing feathery touches against his own. Realizing what he was feeling, Bakura put both hands onto Marik's chest, and shoved him away quickly.

Marik looked slightly stunned, but smirked and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I can do it myself," Bakura spat, sounding just like a small child. At the moment, however, he didn't care. Instead, he focused on wadding his hair back, and tying it up with the ribbon that Marik had passed to him.

"Now you can mess with the food," Marik smiled, eyes narrowing. The albino knew that the stupid Earthbender was just waiting for the chance to know that Bakura had fucked up. Well, fat chance of that happening!

Shoving up his sleeves, Bakura flared his nostrils, and stared at his knew, lumpy white foe.

This tofu was going down.

-(-o-)-

"Knock, knock. If you don't answer, to fucking bad, cuz I'm opening the door anyways!" Mariku snarled, sliding open the door with much more power then was necessary. His tall, gravity-defying hair scraped the door-frame as he strode into the house, keeping his shoes on purposefully. He even dragged his heels a little bit, just to leave small mud stains.

"I'm in here," a small, quiet voice called, and a fluffy white head of hair peeked out of a room, framing large chocolate eyes and pale, fragile face. Mariku sneered, hating all things weak. What was the point of living if you were weak, after all?

"I see that," Mariku responded drily, walking forward and glaring angrily down at the whittete. He could see that the small boy was offering a timid smile, clearly trying to at least make friends with the psychotic blonde.

Ha!

"What the hell do you need me to do?" He demanded, tone clearly showing no-nonsense. That stupid, shy smile faltered for a moment, and the whittete nibbled at his lips, eyes roaming everywhere just to avoid direct contact with the stormy gaze bearing down on him.

"Really, I don't need anything. I just have a bit of a cold. It'll be gone in a few days' time. However. . ." The boy's voice dropped tremendously at this point, and Mariku could only glare, silently urging the frail boy to speak.

"However . . . If you don't mind. . . Would you play a game with me?" The whittete questioned, voice tremulous as he stared up at Mariku, fear slithering within the depths of his gaze. Mariku's nostrils flared, and he stared angrily down at the whittete.

"Sure, why the hell not. I have to stay here until your bastard of a father comes, anyways," Mariku spat, shoving past the white-haired boy and flopping down in his bedroom. There were to simple mats, each with a blanket and pillow. On the wall was pinned up a portrait of a beautiful woman with long, snowy white hair and sparkling blue eyes. Mariku could only deduce that it was the two Fire Nation brats' mother.

A window was also there, and Mariku could see that somebody had been painting flowers onto the wooden parts of it, and even sometimes adding a miniature doodle to the corners. Stacks of parchment were off to the side, revealing that whoever was painting, had been doing it a lot.

Plopping down in the middle of the room, he watched the white-headed boy shuffle nervously to a corner, where there were stacks of different games. The boy pushed past all of those, however, and extracted what appeared to be regular paper with some drawings on it.

Curiosity perked, Mariku widened his eyes as he saw the Fire Nation kid place down the sheet of paper, and take some type of cube from his pocket that appeared to be numbered. Setting them down on the floor between them, the whittete settled down, and stared at Mariku.

"What the hell is that?" the blonde demanded rudely, shoving a finger in the paper's direction. The whittete flushed, and pushed his fingers together, twiddling his thumbs as he stared at the paper.

"A game. A new game. I was wondering if you'd play with me, and tell me if you like it any," the boy rambled, pulling his feet in and pushing his knees to his chest, tremulous chin resting upon his knee-caps.

Mariku groaned. "Whatever. How do I play?"

"Well, you take this dice, then you roll it, and you go those amount of spaces. Then if you land on a space with a monster or card symbol, you draw a card and get different spell, and powers and, then..."

-(-o-)-

Marik burst into laughter as Bakura scrunched the tofu hard between his hands, sending pieces of it flying everywhere, getting caught up in Bakura's already messy hair, and splattering his face. Curses flew from Bakura's mouth, and he threw the tofu angrily at the counter, turning to hiss at Marik.

The blonde couldn't control himself, though, and had to prop himself up against the wall as his guffaws slowly died in his throat. Grinning, he lifted his gaze to the huffing, red-faced Bakura, before wetting a rag, and passing it to the frustrated Firebender.

"This is stupid!" Bakura ground out, watching as Marik made another, perfect tofu-kitten. The Earthbender just smiled, attempting to hide the curving of his lips. Bakura had failed five times now. He just seemed to use to much power on the tofu.

"Come here," Marik bade, rolling his hand at the end of its wrist. Bakura just glared at him, before peeling his lips back in an impressive snarl that, a week ago, would've startled Marik a little bit. Now, however, he knew better, and knew that Bakura was all hot air.

"Need I remind you that _you_, Ishtar, are the slave in this relationship?" Bakura grumbled, but stepped forward nonetheless, regarding Marik with a less then trusting gaze. Lavender eyes merely rolled, before Marik passed Bakura another wad of tofu.

"Marik, I'm done with thi-"

"Hush, and try again," Marik demanded, stepping behind Bakura. The albino gave him a suspicious glance, but began applying pressure to the tofu. Marik took this moment to snake his arms around Bakura's, interlacing their fingers and halting the albino's progress.

"What do you think you're doing?" A flustered Bakura demanded, but Marik just rolled his eyes. Really, Bakura had to work on this whole pride thing. Instead of answering, Marik moved his fingers, and, consequently moved Bakura's, showing the albino not to use such brute force.

Finally, Bakura jerked away from him, and gave an angry sniff, nose turning up as he glared angrily at Marik. "I can handle this on my own, you annoying child," Bakura growled, kneading at the tofu, and finally make a satisfactory ball.

"See, I told you I could do it," Bakura sneered, holding the ball out to Marik. The blonde ran an appraising eye over it, before closing his eyes and making a small humming noise. Leaning forward, he squinted one eyes at it, doing all these things on purpose, just to watch Bakura grow more and more irritated.

"I dunno, it seems a bit lumpy," Marik said, voice clearly nonchalant. He felt something collide with his face, though, and realized that a pissed off Bakura was glaring at him, now with empty hands. Marik gave a mock-pout, rubbing at his cheek.

Bakura reached backwards, however, and smirked. "Kitty these, fucker," he laughed, throwing one of Marik's perfect tofu-kittens at the blonde. Marik yelped and ducked, racing from the kitchen as Bakura gathered more of the food in his arms, chasing Marik into the street, and pelting him with the foods.

Needless to say, many villagers stopped, clearly surprised by the fact that an Earth Citizen and a Fire Nation boy were _playing _together. One boy watched, narrowing his eyes angrily as he ran a hand through his stubby blonde hair. His watery eyes stayed locked on the albino figure, hatred burning in his pupils, promising revenge.

-(-o-)-

"Hey, you!" Mariku barked, glaring angrily at the still-nameless whittete across from him. The smaller boy giggled, and looked up at Mariku from behind white lashes, eyes shimmering with nervous joy.

"My name is Ryou," the boy stated, before tilting his head to the side. "Yours?"

"Mariku," the blonde grunted, shifting his attention back to the game they had started. "Why the hell is the map blank from this point on? I just now got my Winged Phoenix of Ra! I need to go get Obelisk! Tell me the secrets, fluffy!"

Ryou covered his mouth with his hand, laughing into his palm as he watched Mariku's face crinkle with anger and disappointment. Yes, Mariku had indeed captured the Winged Phoenix of Ra, a monster within the game. Ryou himself had obtained Slifer the Sky Dragon, and now it was a race to obtain Obelisk. Then, their characters could go challenge the Ancient Sun Emperor to a duel, after passing the fearsome Akefia Touzouku-ou.

"Well. . . The game isn't finished," Ryou replied, twiddling with some of his white hair. "You see. . . I actually made this game. I haven't had anybody to play it with so far, so I didn't know if I should continue it or not. You see, my father despises games, and Bakura thinks it's to childish. He prefers card games, himself."

Sighing, Ryou hugged his knees in closer. "I haven't filled in the parts with Obelisk, Akefia, or the Pharaoh. . ."

"Well, I want to finish this game, dammit!" Mariku barked, pounding a fist into the floor. "You better finish it, so I can kick your skinny ass!"

Ryou giggled. "It's not that simple I'm afraid. You see, this game will be much bigger. I plan on adding this magical items; the Millennium Items. You equip them to your characters and they learn new spells. Would you... Like to see them?"

Mariku nodded, blonde hair waving as he watched Ryou rise up, and go to the corner of games once more. Pulling out a small, wooden box, the boy placed it between himself and Mariku, undoing the clasp and showing Mariku several of the Items.

"You see, the Rod," Ryou held up a miniature piece that had some weird looking eye design on it, "is won when you go through the Tombs, where you got the Winged Phoenix of Ra. It gives you the power of brain control. The Necklace," Ryou showed Mariku the miniature necklace, "can be obtained their too, and it can predict your opponent's moves!"

"This," Ryou held up an Eye, "is won from the man Pegasus, who you had to fight earlier on. It allows you to read minds. Next comes the Scale and Ankh, which you have to defeat Shadi for; the man who I won my Slifer from. With the Ankh, you can manipulate your opponents chakra, and find ways to manipulate them. With the Scale, you can judge their spirit, and deal an attack accordingly. Finally, you win the Ring from Akefia, which has the power to shoot lightening, and the Puzzle from the Pharaoh, which gives you access to the Shadow Realm which in turn sends you to to where you will fight Exodia, King of Spirits.

Ryou was panting slightly as he finished his little monologue. Mariku was nodding however, chin resting in his hand as he stared at the Millennium Items.

"Would you. . . I know it's rude of me to ask but. . . Would you mind helping me with it?" Ryou mumbled, fidgeting with his hair as his eyes danced around in their sockets, once again hoping to avoid anything that was Mariku.

"Sure. Not like I have anything to do anyways," Mariku muttered. "For the next few days, I'm chore-less, and I have to be here anyways."

Ryou offered up a genuine smile, which quickly crashed as he heard the door opening, and the sound of shoes being removed. Mariku stood up, and Ryou made a mad-scramble-attempt to gather up everything to do with his game, and shoved it haphazardly into the gaming corner.

"Disgusting Earth-scum!" he heard a voice rage from the main room. Mariku smirked and strutted, out, Ryou's eyes never leaving the brave, crazy blonde's back.

-(-o-)-

**By the by, I've never seen tofu, but it was one of th Earth Kingdom dishes that didn't involve meat, and it made me think of riceballs, which made me think of Shoujou and I was all like: YESSSSSSSSSS. (**I really doubt tofu would explode like that, but shhhh**)**

**And guess what? I watched Insidious, and now I'm scared as hell! I can't cut the lights off in my bedroom, which means I'll be up all night. Friggn' awesome. Plus, I'm already afraid of bathrooms, and now going into our bathroom makes me wanna scream, cuz I'm scared some old lady's gonna appear behind me yelling 'you bitch!' and trying to strangle me... T.T**

**Oh yes, LadySunami gave me an idea for next chapter, so~ it shouldn't be long before that one is up. School will be starting up soon, though, so updates should pick up speed when that happens.**

**(And dammit, Deathshipping... You little worm! It wasn't originally going to be in this but... Dammit!)**

**Good-bye!**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 5: Chapter 5: When Rhinos Attack<strong>**

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><p>"Marik!" A loud, accented voice barked in Marik's ear, causing the blonde to groan and roll over onto his back. Frowning from the pain, he quickly sat up, blinking blearily at an unwelcome sight. Bakura Touzouku, for the second time in a row, was in Marik's house. In his bedroom. In the morning. Thanking his ancestors that he was still clothed, Marik decided to figure out what brought on this unpleasant visit.<p>

"What do you want, Bakura?" Marik questioned, voice thick with sleep as he rubbed his puffy eyes. Bakura's own crimson orbs narrowed, and he crossed his arms, snorting**(1)**.

"I'm here for breakfast, of course. Then you will go clean the stables. My father wanted me to do it, but I decided that it was perfect for a little slave like you," Bakura sneered, and rose up from his position, and walked out of the room. Marik snarled, but got up, pulling on a sleeveless tunic that split at the sides, along with some brown britches that tightened around his knees.

Moving into the kitchen, Marik began preparing a simple salad. He could see Bakura eying it with distaste, but once he was presented with a plate, he ate it anyways. Marik made some for himself, and began eating as well.

"You know... If you want me to make you Fire Nation food, you'll have to help me out a little. I don't know any recipes from there. All the stuff I know, I learned from Ishizu," Marik informed the Firebender, watching as Bakura chewed angrily at the leaves.

"I don't know any recipes," Bakura snarled. "However... When Ryou is feeling better, I suppose you could go ask him. I believe he has some scrolls laying about with recipes our mother wrote down for him."

"Where is your mother, by the way?" Marik asked, taking his final bite of salad.

"Where's your mother and father?" Bakura barked back, clearly agitated at being asked such a question. Marik reacted in a similar way, and decided that they had done enough talking. After cleaning up, he joined Bakura at the door.

"So we're cleaning out stables?" Marik questioned, crossing his arms and following the albino down the village path. Bakura let out another snort, and turned his head to watch Marik, a smug expression on his face.

"No. It seems like every time I try to help you with something, it just blows up in my face. So, I'm leaving the stable completely up to you. Have fun with the ostrich horses. However... Stay out of the stall closest to the door. A Komodo Rhino resides there, and it can be quite volatile," Bakura kept his gaze straight as he spoke, and Marik scoffed.

"How nice of you to care!" Marik spat, crossing his arms and glaring at nothing in particular.

"Don't get pissy with me!" Bakura growled. "And also don't go thinking I'm soft. I just need you around so I don't have to do chores," the albino huffed, looking pointedly away from the blonde.

"Whatever.." Marik grumbled.

-(-o-)-

"Ryou!" Mariku barked, sliding open the door and stomping into the whittete's bedroom. He was greeted by a gracious smile, and saw that the smaller boy already had his game out, and was setting up pieces.

"Hello, Mariku," Ryou greeted, pausing in his motions to look up at the psychotic blonde. Mariku sneered, and sat down opposite Ryou, watching as the boy's pale hands went back to setting things up.

"So. . . Are we working on the game today?" Mariku grumbled, shifting his tunic a little, watching Ryou lift large, wide eyes to study Mariku for a moment, before delivering the blonde a nod, and returning his attention to the game.

"Do you bend?" Mariku questioned, not really pausing to think about if it were rude or not. He saw Ryou flinch a little bit, but decided he didn't care, and that he wanted answers. Narrowing black-lined eyes, he watched Ryou fumble for a minute.

"No... I-I... I can't," Ryou confessed, a troubled look coming into his eyes as he bit frantically at his lip, clearly ashamed of this. Mariku just gave a sage nod, before reaching down and picking up the miniature Millennium Rod.

"Good. I don't bend either. I just feel a little bit better knowing that some Fire Nation bitch isn't better then me," Mariku replied, holding the Rod up and let it catch the light filtering in from Ryou's window.

Ryou's smile returned in a heart-beat, and he quickly picked up the Millennium Ring. Squinting one eye, he lined the Ring up, and flicked it forwards, sending it whizzing through the air and onto the Millennium Rod, swirling around the tip for a moment before finally settling at the base.

Mariku stared at it for a moment, before snorting and throwing both small Items at Ryou. He deftly caught them and placed them into their positions in the box, a small smile tugging at his lips.

-(-o-)-

Marik growled as he dug the shovel into another pile of manure, hoisting it upwards and slinging it from the stall. His only job was to shovel the poop out into the main hall of the stable. Another boy was going to come by later with the wheelbarrow.

Now, while Marik didn't envy him the job of having to deliver all of this _shit_ to the manure pile, he still couldn't help but not be completely happy that he was currently moving about in the straw-ridden, feces covered stalls.

Outside, he could hear the ostrich horses clucking about, making strange noises as they grazed on the grass. Hopefully, whatever was going into their digestive tracks, Marik wouldn't have to shovel out later on as well.

Frowning, he heard a voice floating from outside, and detected the loud, obnoxious voice of Hirutani approaching. Grinning, Marik knew that Bakura was waiting outside for him, and that a possible fight could break out.

Not that Marik wanted to see Bakura's impressive moves again.

Propping his shovel against the stall he was residing in, Marik snuck forwards, pretending to be checking a stall. Bakura wasn't paying attention, though, and Marik slipped to the side, pressing his back against the wall, and pulling the door inwards, blocking anybody from seeing him.

Peering through the crack the hinges made, Marik sat on all fours, thanking his ancestors that this spot happened to be one of the places he'd cleaned thoroughly earlier. Grinning at his genius, Marik focused on the approaching bully.

-(-o-)-

Bakura stood outside the barn, leaning heavily against the wooden establishment. Out back, he could hear the ostrich horses roaming around, occasionally making noises and allowing Bakura the comfort of knowing that they were still alive.

Running a hand through his hair, Bakura squinted his eyes, realizing that a lone figure was making its way down the hill, keeping up a cocky pace. Groaning with frustration, Bakura saw that it was Hirutani, making his way towards the albino with a smirk on his face.

"Got left cleaning the stalls, huh?" Hirutani mocked, snorting as he said so. Hands in his pockets, he swaggered up to Bakura, smile all teeth and cockiness. Bakura made a growling noise at the back of his throat, and his eyes narrowed dangerously.

"I don't see how that's any of your business. Do what you need, and get lost!" Bakura spat, crossing his arms over his chest and lifting his chin just a bit. Hirutani frowned down at him, before shifting his attention to the barn.

"I'm just waiting for my father. He's teaching me how to use the Komodo Rhino. They're really big in war-fare, and I want to become a soldier and fight for the Fire Lord," Hirutani informed Bakura, obviously proud that he was going to be doing something for the Fire Nation.

"Oh, look who gives a fuck?" Bakura muttered to himself. "Perhaps that little flower over there!" Hirutani didn't hear, and instead shifted his gaze back to Bakura, the cocky glint returning to them as he smirked downwards at the shorter whittete.

"So. . . Have you gotten a date for the Fire Days Festival?" Hirutani questioned, eyes narrowing. Bakura snorted and pushed his bangs away from his pale face, giving Hirutani a full-frontal glare.

"I don't need a date. I'm going with my brother and slave. Ryou's into these things more then I am, and my slave will be there to carry things for him," Bakura confided, smirking as he saw Hirutani's victorious face fall for a moment.

"Oh yeah, that slave of yours..." Hirutani sneered. "I hate girly men. Honestly, he looks like he puts to much attention in his hair!" A loud bang erupted, and the sound of cursing, causing both Bakura and Hirutani to shift their gazes to the barn.

"Marik," Bakura snarled, pushing off of his position on the wall and moving 'round to enter the barn. "I swear to the Ancient Dragons above if you somehow fucked this up-"

-(-o-)-

Marik let out a small noise, and clutched at his hurt fist. Being talked about behind his back pissed him off, and before he could even think about it, he'd punched the wall, consequently making out loud ass noise and hurting his knuckles.

Grumbling, he let out another noise as he realized Bakura was about to come in the barn and see Marik eaves-dropping at the door. Without thinking, Marik lurched backwards and entered the first stall he saw, slamming the gate closed behind him.

Sighing with relief, Marik took a step back, and felt something hot and warm**(2)** against his neck, causing him to freeze up in fear. A snort followed the warmth, and Marik felt snot fleck against his back. Letting out a strangled cry, he whirled on his heels, and stared up into the crazed eyes of a Komodo Rhino.

Biting back a scream, Marik leaped to the side as the giant beast began stomping its feet against the ground, beginning to shuffle uneasily in its stall. Marik rushed to the corner, hopping up on an upturned trough.

The Rhino began tossing its head, and Marik watched as several of the horns pierced the walls, ripping apart the planks of wood.

"Oh fuck me," Marik hissed, attempting to scrabble up the side of the flat wall. Pausing for a second, Marik had the sudden urge to smack himself for his stupidity. Marik dropped down to the ground, and summoned the earth from beneath his feet.

He felt rocks shifting, and a large pedestal appeared, lifting him upwards. He reached the top of the barn, and grabbed hold of one of the rafters. Remembering Hirutani outside, Marik stomped hard on the platform, causing the whole thing to crumble and revert back to its original place. Swinging forwards from beam to beam, he managed to reach the loft.

Sighing with relief, he watched as the Rhino rampaged below, as he stayed safe and secure on the loft. He had expected the beast to calm down after Marik disappeared from its space. However, he was sorely disappointed, and watched as the raging beast beat against the stall more, ripping it up and splintering its surroundings.

With a moan and face-palm, Marik watched as the Rhino finally escaped from its stall, charging out into the hallway. It was barely big enough to fit the Rhino, let alone the albino and bully that had just entered it.

"Run Bakura!" Marik yelled, and he saw the albino turn and run, leaving Hirutani as he sprinted. Marik couldn't really give credit to himself, though. Honestly, he didn't even know why he yelled. Of _course _somebody's going to run with a giant Rhino staring down at them.

Letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding, Marik rose up and ran down the loft and towards a window. He saw the Rhino erupting into the outside world, letting out a loud bellow. Grimacing, Marik watched it charge forwards, and saw Hirutani disappear beneath its pounding feet.

With a slow blink, he watched in surprise as Bakura pointed his fists to the ground, fire spurting from his knuckles as he rocketed off away from the earth. Shooting upwards, the Firebender propelled himself upwards to the window, and swung in, landing next to Marik on the loft.

"What," Bakura panted, "did you do this time?"

Marik innocently ignored the question, and instead pointed to the Rhino, which had passed over where Hirutani was, revealing the boy's body. One of his arms looked crooked, but other then that and a few cuts, he looked relatively fine.

The Rhino receded into the fields, and Marik heard people shouting in fear and anger. He could see crimson clad people moving forwards towards the beast, slowly roping it up and pulling it down. With a sigh, he sagged sideways, unconsciously bumping his shoulders against Bakura's.

The Firebender roughly shoved him away, and jumped from the window. Marik growled, and slide from his spot as well, feet thumping against the grass. A man was approaching them, a crimson cloak wrapped about his shoulders and golden britches clasped to his legs. He wore black boots with the toes curled upwards, decorated in yellow swirls. His blonde hair was tied up into a bun, matching his beard and curled mustache.

"Hirutani?" The man barked, rushing forwards and dropping down to his knees. He curled his fingers in his son's short, stubby hair, jerking the messy boy upwards. The man's blue eyes narrowed, and he jerked viciously, shaking his son.

"Dad?" Hirutani squeaked in a pathetic voice, and Marik watched in disgust as the once proud bully shrunk in on himself, attempting to appear smaller before this new entity. Bakura, however, had no restraints, and burst into laughter. Hirutani's father turned around, glare as intense as could be. His mouth snapped open to no doubt yell something, but Marik reacted first.

Marik slapped his hand over Bakura's mouth, and pulled the albino in close, shoving his pale face into Marik's green-clad chest. Bakura began making muffled protests, having muscle spams as Marik held the white-haired boy clamped tightly in place.

"Forgive him! He happens to have issues when seeing pain! The doctors say it gives him a type of high," Marik simpered, opening his eyes just a tad bit wider, and giving a falsely sweet smile. Seeing as he was an Earth Citizen, it did the blonde know good, and Hirutani's father merely sneered.

"That's Touzouku's boy, isn't it? I've never heard of him having such problems," the blonde man spat, pulling Hirutani roughly to his feet. Marik narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth. The cute-act wasn't getting him anywhere, and it was getting harder to hold Bakura still. No doubt the white-haired teen would resort to Firebending soon, seeing as Marik could already feel heat gathering in the others pale palms whenever he struck the blonde.

"Well, do you go around telling other people your son's a sniveling coward?" Marik spat back. Maybe it was that he'd gotten too confident about being able to speak freely around Bakura, or maybe he was delirious from being so scared of the Rhino.

Whatever the reason, though, Marik had said it, and it was to late to regret anything now. Steeling his jaw, he prepared to be hit by the blonde man. No such blow was forth-coming. Instead, the man grasped Hirutani's shoulders and directed his son away.

"Filthy Earth-scum. You'll all rot someday," the man grumbled, pushing his son forwards. "And as for you... I told you to wait until I got here!" He yelled at the groggy Hirutani, forcing his son to walk as he screamed at him. "Why the hell did you do something so stupid? Think you're so big as to control a Rhino on your own without training?"

Marik felt relief wash over him as he watched them disappear, voice following afterwords. Forgetting he had a hold on Bakura, it came as a surprise to him when he felt something scorching hot slam into his face, knocking him off balance and sending him tumbling to the ground, clutching at his cheek.

Bakura fell to his knees, panting and wheezing as he clutched at his throat. Marik realized that he'd probably cut off more of Bakura's are then he'd meant too. Of course, Marik wasn't going to apologize. The way Marik saw it, Bakura deserved this, after how he'd treated Marik, even referring to the blonde as his 'slave'.

Still rubbing at his throbbing cheek, Marik stumbled to his feet and moved towards Bakura. He waited for the albino to rise, glaring angrily at the lavender-eyed boy before him.

"Why in the _hell _did you do that?" Bakura hissed, stepping forward and shoving his face into Marik's own, causing the blonde to make an angry noise. Marik didn't like his space being invaded. It was one thing when he was holding Bakura close. It was another when the albino was shoving his pale, pointed face into Marik's.

"That guy was going to hurt you or something for being stupid!" Marik spat, rising up to the challenge.

Bakura paused for a moment, before a sly grin spread over his face. "So you were worried about me? Now, granted, I can see why you would want someone as amazing as me, but you surely know I'm off-limits. And smothering me is not helping your case, either."

Marik felt heat creeping up his necks and into his cheeks, and he thanked his ancestors that his tanned skin made it nearly invisible. Instead, he let out an irritated huff, and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I could care less about you! And who would want you? I was merely being the best _slave_," Marik spat the word like it was poison, "that I could be, Master Touzouku."

"Whatever," Bakura grumbled, turning away from the blonde and heading towards the main path. "Fuck this. Somebody else will come and clean up later. I'm tired, and sore..." Pausing, Bakura slowly turned on his heels, eying Marik until the blonde felt uncomfortable.

"What?" The tanned boy snapped, glaring angrily at Bakura.

"I was merely wondering if you'd like to attend the spa with me," Bakura commented, arching an eyebrow.

Marik blinked, confusion settling on his features. "A... Spa?" Marik questioned, face scrunching up at the words. He was poor, after all, and had never been to one. The closest thing he'd ever been to was the natural springs out in the woods. Even with that said, he hadn't been since he was a little kid.

"Well, the Fire Nation has a bathhouse in this village, and I was wondering, since you were such a nice little slave, if you would like to visit with me?" Bakura continued on, grimacing with each word. Marik had to resist the urge to laugh, knowing good and well that Bakura was apparently having issues with being nice and polite.

"Okay then," Marik responded, not quite sure what else to say.

"Well then, let's go."

-(-o-)-

**(1)-The Snot Monster appears a lot in this story...**

**(2)-Hurr-hur... No, no... Keep it T Jessica...**

**Why do I keep having awkward endings?-!-?-!**

**Um, sorry if the barn part is confusing. I'm basing it kind of as a mix between our old barn, and my Granddaddy's old farm. However, these are memories from when I was three and twelve so... Yeah. I just remember there were wasps, yellow-jackets, and snakes out the ass-end. I know we used to climb up on the rafters and swing to the loft as well, so...**

**Guess what? I actually have the next few chapters slightly 'formed' in my head. Holy fuck. A~nd thank LadySunami for this chapter, since she gave this idea. :)**

**Holy hell school starts in a week... Fuck me Amadeus, neither me or my mom knew! I'm gonna be a Sophomore... o.O That's friggn' weird to say... So used to bein' a Freshman... Oh Lord... I know some of you are in the same boat as me, though, and I wish you good luck!**

**Well, please review, an~d**

**See-ya!**

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><p><strong><strong>Chapter 6: Chapter 6: Let's Talk Sex<strong>**

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><p>Combing a hand through his hair, Marik stood at the gates of the bathhouse. He hadn't really thought much about it, but now he felt quite uncomfortable with the thought of removing his clothing, and being in the presence of so many Fire citizens.<p>

Scowling, he looked to the side, where Bakura occupied space. He had a hand propped on his hip, and a cocky grin present upon his face. He twisted slightly at the waist to focus his gaze upon Marik.

"In we go then, slave," Bakura purred. "After all, I have _plans _for you." Marik didn't like the sound of that, and debated just going home. Sighing with defeat, he realized it wouldn't do him any such good to behave as thus, seeing as Bakura would just end up dragging him back by the roots of his hair anyways, or come up with something worse.

Grumbling mild protests that he had no intentions of acting on, Marik entered the building.

-(-o-)-

Bakura sat on a stool, red towel draped about his hips as he stared at Marik. The Earthbender was crouched down next to him, glaring irritably up at the half-naked Bakura, while he remained fully clothed in the heated room. Swiping some of the sweat from his forehead, he reached into a bucket, and withdrew a wet towel.

Sighing irritably, he pressed it against Bakura's skin, and began washing at the other boy's back, running the cloth over Bakura's bony body. "You need to eat more," Marik muttered, prodding at Bakura's flat tummy.

The albino man glared pointedly at Marik, before smacking him round the back of the head. "Fuck you," he snorted, and grabbed the rag from Marik's hand. "And you're doing it wrong, anyways."

"I'm doing it wrong?" Marik queried, sitting back on his haunches as he eyed Bakura, arms crossed over his broad chest in a way that clearly conveyed his unhappiness, and doubtfulness, about this. "How in the Ancestors' names do I mess that up?"

"You just do, all right!" Bakura snapped, sharp teeth clamping down together as his eyes flashed a brilliant red, clearly challenging Marik to argue with him.

"No!" Marik argued, rising forward slightly, shoes slipping a bit in the wet surface. With a startled noise, he tripped forward, face falling into Bakura's lap. He heard the man above him make an undignified noise.

"FUCK!" Bakura yelped, "my sac oh damn!" He slipped backwards off his stool and his head made a resounding crack against the tiled floor, feet flailing in the air as he curled in on himself, hands immediately going to the injured area.

Marik himself was in a similar position, having shot backwards, holding his face, screeching obscenities. "MY VIRGIN FACE!" Marik cried. "YOUR STUFF TOUCHED MY FACE!" He flopped around on the puddle ridden floor, not believing his awful luck.

"NOTHING TOUCHED YOUR FACE!" Bakura shrieked ,voice sounding a bit more high pitched as he finally sat up, tears at the corner of his eyes. He glared hatefully at the blonde boy before him, anger welling up inside of him.

"How would you know?"

"It's my dick!" Bakura shot back, ignoring all the weird looks they were getting. People all around were stopping to investigate, nosy personalities showing clearly as they all turned and stared at the arguing boys, wondering what could possibly be going on.

"Don't be crass!" Marik admonished, rising into the sitting position, and parting his fingers enough to where he could peer through them, and to Bakura. Grumbling, he realized he felt awkward now, and he kept imagining that awful moment over and over in his head, on constant loop.

"Would you two keep it down!" a harsh voice barked, and both Marik and Bakura wheeled around, surprised to see Hirutani staring down at him. Not that they hadn't recognized the voice (oh, no, you couldn't miss that voice) but the fact that he was here had been a slight shock. Last they had seen of him, he'd been in trouble after getting pounded down by a raging beast.

"Hirutani," Bakura growled, glaring up at the older boy, before relaxing himself once more. He didn't want to appear flustered at all with this boy here. He wasn't a good fighter, but Bakura didn't trust him.

Marik held similar thoughts and doubts, but he didn't back down, and stayed in his position, technically closer to Hirutani then Bakura was. He merely stared up at the obnoxious blonde, however, with a contemptuous look, clearly showing tha the wasn't scared of him, nor was he going to cower at his feet, or anything of the sort.

"You idiots are making enough ruckus to raise the dead," the bully snarled, glaring at the two boys in front of him. "Go take your flirting somewhere else, preferably deep into the woods where a snake will get stuck up blondie's ass."

"Excuse me!" Marik shrilled, interrupting any type of come-back Bakura had planned on making. "For a snake to get into my ass, I'd have to be the one bottoming!" Hirutani gave a sickening smirk. "Ugh, fuck no. If we_were _fucking, which we're not, _I'd _be on top."

"What?" Bakura shouted, launching forward, and landing on his hands and knees next to Marik on the floor. His palms slipped slightly in the water, and he scrabbled about, before thrusting his pale face into Marik's, crimson eyes smoldering with anger.

"You heard me!" Marik retorted, crossing his arms over his chest, not even worrying about the fact that his butt was slowly getting wetter, warm water seeping through the cloth to attack his bare skin beneath it.

"I heard you all right," Bakura growled, "but you think _you_ would top _me_?" he demanded. "Like I would ever let that happen!"

"We're not going to have sex anyways!" Marik shouted, hands going into the air with exasperation as he stared at Bakura, not understanding what had the white haired man so serious about this all of a sudden. Bakura, however, was not ready to drop it.

"But we need to settle this!" Bakura hissed. "Even if we never sleep together-"

"You say it like there's a possibility!"

"Even if we never sleep together," Bakura ground out, plugging on, and ignoring Marik's interruption, "I just want to settle this, and I want you to admit the fact that I would top!"

"No!"

"Would you two faggots wait until a later date to discuss this?" Hirutani demanded, stomping his foot, causing water to slosh from a puddle and speckle Marik's clothes. Bakura, however, was unaffected, due to his naked, already wet body. Making a disgusted noise, the blonde stared up at the bully. To be honest, he'd forgotten that he was there, and the same could be said about Bakura. Both had been to wrapped up in the other to bother with the other boy.

"We're not faggots," Marik grumbled.

"It seems you know enough about the mechanics of gay sex," Hirutani rudely pointed out, eying Marik. The tanned boy sneered up at Hirutani, and realized how ridiculous this was. He, an average Earth-scum boy, was crouched down in the illustrious spa of the Fire Nation, with two powerful Firebenders standing around him, chatting it up like this was an everyday occurrence, along with arguing over who would be the receiver in their sex life.

"What did you want, anyways?" Marik finally asked, staring up at Hirutani. Bakura made an angry noise, and began jabbing Marik in the ribs, clearly not finished with the blonde. He had more to say, and he wanted to say it bad. Marik promptly ignored him.

"I just wanted to tell you to shut up," the bully replied, lip curling in a sneer, and making the scratches across his face ripple with the skin. "I'm still incredibly pissed, seeing as it was your stupidity that got me in trouble. That I'm sure of. You were the only one in the stables."

Marik merely shrugged, neither agreeing with nor denying these facts. That, and he couldn't really muster any words, seeing as he was getting even more annoyed with Bakura's thin bony finger, prodding continuously at his ribs.

Hirutani watched with amusement, large arms crossing over his chest as he eyed the invasive albino for a moment.

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT!" Marik finally exploded, whirling slightly and shoving Bakura hard on the shoulders. The Firebender yelped, and slid backwards, actually going across the water, twirling about like a turtle up-ended.

"Hey, Earth-brat!" Hirutani hissed, eyes darting around to all the curious stares. "Quit whatever the fuck you're doing! You're attracting attention! Someone like you should never touch a Fire Citizen of any caliber!"

"And what do you care?" Bakura grumbled, dragging himself back over. Marik gave him a dirty look, before looking at Hirutani as well, curious of the bully's motives. Hirutani's face flushed, and he quickly looked away, scratching at his cheek.

"I'm actually not supposed to be over here," he replied, "so if people hear about you, and my dad comes to investigate, I'll be in deep shit. He thinks I'm in the bath over there, getting my wounds cleaned out by Duke." He finished, rubbing at the back of his head.

Marik looked sideways, and spotted the apparent 'Duke'. He was a man with long black hair, tied sloppily into a ponytail, dressed in crimson, with a matching headband strapped across his forehead, a cocky smirk on his face as he watched Hirutani.

"He's a handsome boy," Marik teased the bully, "why aren't you over there with him?" He ignored the angry look on Bakura's face, and watched as Hirutani glared daggers at Marik. The taller blonde obviously was not okay with this teasing.

"I'm not gay, like you, apparently," Hirutani snorted.

"A real man can admit how good another one looks, without feeling insecure about his sexuality," Marik reprimanded, holding a finger up primly.

"Whatever," Hirutani grumbled. "And I don't like him because he's annoying. He's always talking about something or another, and all the girls ignore me when I'm around him," the bully explained angrily.

"You meant they came near you before?" Marik gasped, hands flying to his mouth in mock amazement. He really enjoyed teasing the other boy like this. After all, he deserved it, due to all that mess earlier.

Hirutani let out a bellow of anger, and all their momentary alliances flew out the window as he lurched forward, fist catching fire as he prepared to launch his fist into Marik. The blonde froze for a moment, before he attempted to move out of the line of fire -quite literally.

He found, however, that it was quite unnecessary, seeing as there was a small white blur, and Bakura was in front of him, catching Hirutani's fist, and dispelling the flame quickly, extinguishing the immediate danger.

"Get lost," Bakura snarled, snapping Hirutani's fist downwards, and launching a rough kick into the bigger boy's ribcage, sending him sliding across the water-slicked floors, and back towards Duke.

Marik blinked, and watched the bully sail away, a smile present on his face.

"Wow," the blonde chuckled, rising from his position. "I'm surprised a little stick like you could manage that!"

Bakura's fist quickly met the blonde's head.


End file.
